Have you ever been on a crowded bus or subway or maybe at an airport and you really wanted to take a break from it all? Now you can with the Klipsch/MODE M40 Active Noise Reduction Headphone. Enjoy the stellar acoustic design from Klipsch Engineering with a unique dual driver concept with a multi-pole crossover. Enjoy the Buttery Warm High's and Tight Slamming Thump of the low frequency response. This fast acting system is truly unique.
There are many added benefits to this design that are not apparent to the average eye. A closer inspection of the design reveals a headband made out of Grilamid material that is so flexible it is virtually indestructible. This material is the same scientific structural material used in premium sunglasses.
The memory foam ear pads are a premium material not found in most headphones. This special foam is covered in a premium material for a near human touch. Chances are you will enjoy the comfort for hours on end.
If you are on a plane for a long period of time you will also enjoy the fact that the headphones will still play audio while the battery is low on power. Imagine if you owned another brand with custom batteries and you could not listen to music or movies while on a flight. With Klipsch MODE you can sit back and enjoy the flight no matter what.
If you have a phone call at the airport or maybe you are having a drink at the bar. With Mode you can enjoy the noise isolation while talking on the phone. You will understand every word the caller is saying and optimize your speech that you send to them with the integrated microphone in the control module.
Be the first…Enjoy MODE!
Preorder today from Klipsch!
Queen
The world has heard Queen through countless Radio Waves, TV Videos, 8 Track Players, Cassette Players, Vinyl Records, CD's, DVD's and now MP3 players. The unmistakable sound of Freddie Mercury with his effortless high range voice is something most people will never forget. Freddie has been gone since 1991 but his music will live on forever as long as there is air to vibrate and eardrums to receive.
The British band Queen formed in London in 1971, originally consisting of Freddie Mercury, (lead vocals, piano), Brian May (lead guitar, vocals), John Deacon (bass guitar), and Roger Taylor (drums, vocals). In 1973 they signed their first recording contract for EMI. That year they released their first album, QUEEN. The same year saw their first major UK tour, and in 1974 they released QUEEN II as well as making their first UK headlining tour. They made their first US tour, and in November released SHEER HEART ATTACK which was a hit on both sides of the Atlantic.
1975 saw their new release, A NIGHT AT THE OPERA, and – significantly – the single Bohemian Rhapsody. At 5 minutes 55 seconds it should have been too long for successful radio play but it became one of the greatest singles of all time, staying at No. 1 in the UK chart for nine weeks. The song has regularly featured in all major pop polls and was recently named again as the best single of all time. The success of A NIGHT AT THE OPERA was equally stunning, giving the band their first platinum album.
In 1976 they toured the US and Japan and by spring all four albums resided in the UK Top Twenty. Later that year they released A DAY AT THE RACES, and gave a free concert in Hyde Park to an estimated crowd of 200,000 fans. The album was a huge success, advance orders alone amounting to over 500,000. The following year saw two major US tours, the band’s sixth album, NEWS OF THE WORLD and the legendary double A side single, WE WILL ROCK YOU and WE ARE THE CHAMPIONS.
1978’s JAZZ, included another huge hit single in Bicycle Race and Queen toured the US and Canada. They spent much of 1979 touring in Europe and Japan, as well as releasing their first live album, LIVE KILLERS. They were also approached to write the score for a forthcoming feature film, FLASH GORDON. Before that they released THE GAME in 1980 which went five times platinum in Canada alone! Another One Bites The Dust became the band’s biggest selling American single. Later that year the soundtrack for FLASH GORDON was released and by the end of the year Queen had sold over 45,000,000 albums worldwide.
In 1981 they toured the Far East and were the first band to make a stadium tour of South America. They played to 131,000 people in Sao Paolo, the largest paying audience for any band anywhere in the world. GREATEST HITS, GREATEST FLIX and GREATEST PIX were released simultaneously later in the year and Greatest Hits has rarely been out of the UK album charts since. Greatest Flix was the first collection of promo-videos released commercially by any band. Next year saw the release of the band’s twelfth album, HOT SPACE whilst they were in the middle of a European tour.
1984 saw THE WORKS and the single Radio Ga Ga became a worldwide hit, reaching No. 1 in 19 countries. Another huge hit was I Want To Break Free, featuring one of their most famous videos, all dressed in drag. In 1985 they were the headlining act at Rock in Rio, the biggest festival to be held anywhere in the world. They again made history that year with the show-stealing performance at Live Aid from Wembley Stadium, which proved to be a turning point for the band, One Vision being the first post Live Aid release.
1986 saw their 14th album, A KIND OF MAGIC, which was the soundtrack to the Russel Mulcahy film, Highlander. The title track became another worldwide smash and the album entered the UK charts at No. 1; later in the year the 2nd live album, LIVE MAGIC, went into the charts at No. 3. Between 1988 and 1991 Queen released three more albums, THE MIRACLE in 1989 and in 1991 INNUENDO and GREATEST HITS TWO. All three entered the UK charts at No. 1, as did the single Innuendo.
On 23rd November 1991 Freddie Mercury announced to the world that he had AIDS and the next day he died peacefully at his home, surrounded by family and friends. He remains the most high profile loss from the disease in the entertainment world and the news shocked fans throughout the world. As a tribute Bohemian Rhapsody /These Are The Days Of Our Lives was released as a double A-sided single to raise funds for the Terence Higgins Trust. It entered the UK chart at No. 1, where it stayed for five weeks, raising over £1,000,000 for the charity and Queen became the first band to have the same single top the uK charts twice. In December of that year Queen had 10 albums in the UK Top 100. In 1992 Freddie was awarded posthumously the BRIT’s "Outstanding Contribution to British Music" and Days Of Our Lives won Best Single. On 20th April many of the world’s top stars joined Brian, Roger and John on stage at Wembley for an emotional tribute to Freddie.
In 1995 the tracks that Queen had begun in 1991 were completed by Brian, Roger and John and the long-awaited MADE IN HEAVEN was released worldwide. It was the end of an era. Since then the phenomenon of Queen has remained, however, with continuing sales for their recorded output on CD and video. A ballet of their music by famous French choreographer Maurice Bejart was premiered at the National Theatre in Paris in 1997 and in May 2002 the hit musical We Will Rock You opened to sell-out audiences in London’s West End and continues to play to packed houses and standing ovations every night. Queen’s first DVD Greatest Video Hits Vol.1 was released at the end of October 2002, and yet another piece of Queen product entered the UK charts at number 1. October 2002 also saw Queen receive their own star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, Los Angeles, joining The Beatles as only one of a handful of non-US bands to receive the much coveted honour. Last year, 2004 they were inducted into the Rock and Roll Walk of Fame, and in the UK were voted by the public into the first UK Music Hall of Fame.
Brian and Roger take Queen back onto the touring circuit for the first time since 1986 this Spring, joined by former Free/Bad Company singer, songwriter and musicial Paul Rodgers playing concerts across the UK and throughout Europe. The tour covers over a dozen countries over a six week period, followed in July by 4 major outdoor concerts including London’s Hyde Park on July 8, a venue they last played in September 1976 when playing a free concert, they attracted a record audience of 150,000 to the Royal Park.
One of the greatest rock bands to stand out in my mind... Queen.
Part Three - The Epic Journey of Mont Hagen...
In the final chapter in the Epic of Mont Hagen, we take a look at one of the greatest of Rock 'n Roll influencers. Sammy Hagar is well documented as being a great vocalist and entertainer, but there is one more significant person or group that formed my impression of great Rock and mind blurring guitar licks.
Since 1978 when the Van Halen album was released, Eddie Van Halen has made as big a mark on guitar history as anyone to have ever played electric guitar.
Is it safe to say that without Van Halen, there would be no Joe Satriani, Stevie Vai, Yngwie Malmsteen or even the "drop-D" guitar tuning which led to 1990s "Grunge" Bands? Maybe… but either way, Edward Van Halen is credited with many changes to rock and roll, and is without a doubt one of the most gifted rhythm and lead guitarist to have ever played.
Paul Stanley of Kiss had seen Van Halen play in a Hollywood bar and told Gene Simmons about him. Gene immediately had the band fly to the “The Electric Lady Studio” in New York City to cut a demo album.
Eddie credits his biggest influence from Eric Clapton. By age 14 he claims to have know all of Eric’s guitar solos note per note. It is reported that at 15 he played lead guitar for KISS in the song "Christine Sixteen", but I can’t corroborate that credit. At 18, he shocked his guitar idols who knew everything had changed the moment they heard "Eruptions" from the debut album "Van Halen."
Van Halen, in a May 1984 interview with Eduard Dauphin in Creem magazine, said “I don’t even listen to the radio. I don’t buy records, I don’t listen to anything. I don’t mean that I think I’m too good, that I don’t have to – but I don’t get inspired by listening to anything, except maybe Debussy.” Was he on to something there? Was Eddie more avant-garde than anyone, even Cream, gave him credit for? Was Eddie a Reagan-era Thoreau? Regardless of what one thinks of the guitar playing on “Eruption," his point here is apropos. He already felt too encased by derivative pop music, too encased by oldies, that he felt it was interfering with his ability to create new things (contrary to what he said earlier about Clapton being his biggest influence).
This was 24 years ago, when most of the Western world still had four TV channels, a radio, and a daily newspaper as their media. What a change of events one man can make to the contribution of Rock n Roll…
Photo:
Van Halen Picture : Oakland Alameda County Stadium, Oakland California July 23, 1978 Day on the Green Concert.
The original Van Halen band inclued Eddie's brother Alex, David Lee Roth and Michael Anthony. Alex Van Halen had started playing at an early age with Eddie, and they had actually traded instruments at some point. The pair formed a band with Eddie on lead volcals and guitar and Alex on the drums. Alex is known for his double kickdrum action, but as usual, drummers are more behind the scene and not the center of attention.
This could not be said for David Lee Roth. Dave was the original singer for Van Halen, and he gave a particular flavor to the tunes they cut. But his act was more of the “Dog and Pony” variety. The real talent came from Eddie. Did we really know what “hammer ons” were before Eddie cranked up the heat on the first track of their release with Eruption? The minute the needle hit the record I was dumbfounded, and after four bars of Eddie ripping through my brain, I HAD to have that album.
In 1985-96 Sammy Hagar completes our wicked journey of rock history by joining Van Halen. I don't think this group reached their full potential, but it was probably hindered by alcohol and drugs. This occurred after Sammy had a very successful solo career with hits such as "I Can't Drive 55." The picture above is actually from the reunion tour in 2003-2005. This was short lived due to addiction problems in the band.
Roth rejoined Van Halen in 2007 for a North American tour, which became the highest grossing tour in the band's history. Roth was ranked by Hit Parader nineteenth on their list of the 100 Greatest Heavy Metal Singers of All Time. Wolfgang Van Halen, Eddie's son, joined the band to the shagrin of his mother, Valerie Bertinelli.
Beer Barrel Budget:
The equipment that Van Halen implemented is a rather “Rags to Riches” story. His first Strat style guitar, which is his most famous, was build from Wayne Charvel’s Guitar Shop with scrapped seconds made by Boogie Bodies. It was a second, "recalls Ed. "I gave the guy $50 for the body and got a neck for $80. I picked up the two and slapped them together." That’s right folks, the guitar that Eddie Van Halen used to create some of the most incredible rock riffs ever with (including the immortal "Eruption") cost it's owner only 180 bucks!.
I got to see Eddie’s guitar in 2007 at the NAMM show in Anaheim. Fender had purchased Charvel at that time and had Eddie do a small show. The guitar was displayed in Fender’s suite. Eddie installed a PAF humbucker from a Gibson ES-335. in the bridge position essentially creating a “Fat Strat”. The pickup is canted slightly because Eddie noticed that it was not wide enough for the width of the bridge and strings thus the diagonal position. Close observation showed that a quarter was used behind the Floyd Rose bridge to keep it from moving back or to change to step down tuning. The front pickup was never used to my knowledge. The selector switch in the middle where a center pickup would reside does not work. 
In 1979, Eddie began to play a black, rear loaded pick guard Charvel with yellow stripes. This was later replicated by Charvel along with the black and white striped model and the red white and black model (EVH Art Series Guitars). Eddie’s awesome stage antics led to the destruction of the original neck, so he replaced it with "whatever was handy". It appeared to be an explorer style headstock on a later version of Frankenstrat. During Van Halen's second tour (supporting the Van Halen II album) Ed replaced the original whammy bar with a prototype locking tremolo system built for him by Floyd Rose. He also added truck stop reflectors to the rear of the body so when the spotlight was on him he could reflect the light to the audience. The guitar is known both as a "Frankenstrat" and as THE "Frankenstrat." Fender reissued the guitar in relic form in 2007, the limited run selling at $25,000 a guitar. However, a "new" (non-reliced) Frankenstrat is currently available through the Charvel company, but has been discontinued, for significantly less, the first time Van Halen has consented to the commercial release of a guitar with his signature graphics on it.Another guitar that he used was a stock Ibanez Destroyer unmodified on a lot of the tracks on Van Halens first album such as You Really Got Me and Runnin' With the Devil and a modified Ibanez Destroyer on some tracks on Van Halens second album and a borrowed unmodified Ibanez Destroyer on some tracks on the Women and Children First album. 
Amps:
Eddie likes his Marshall Amps…
Pictured are 1967 100 watt Marshall 1959 Plexi Super Lead heads.
This amp model was used to record all of the early Van Halen albums. It is widely debated as to whethere the original amp he used is completely stock. Some say there were shorting resistors on the output which made it difficult for the transformers to survive. To fix this problem it is proposed that a Variac was used to lower amp voltage to 89 volts, which made it easier for the transformers to survive. Eddie claimed that the lower voltage gave the amp a warmer tone. It is not clear what the story was but this may have added to the compression on the output stage. The amp was powered by 6 CA7 Sylvania Power Tubes. Do you think the racks in the picture needed a fan to keep cool? 
It is apparent that Eddie isn't suffering from a lack of equipment as can be seen in the picture above. Eddie has had multiple endorsements from MI gear companies, such as Peavey in the above picture with David Lee Roth. There are at least eight Peavey 6505 120W Guitar Amp Heads on that stack. Anyone care to calculate the SPL at 10 Meters?
The Legend lives on. Let’s hope that Van Halen comes out with more cutting edge music in their later years.
Part Two - The Epic Journey of Mont Hagen...
Sammy Hagar is one of the greatest rock vocalists of the 20th Century. Period! I will argue that point with anyone. His record stands on its own. Whether it is “Rock Candy” in Montrose, “Why Can’t This Be Love” with Van Halen, or “Can’t Drive 55"/"Heavy Metal” in his solo career, his voice is unmistakable in everything he does.
In 1973, when he first hit the scene with Ronnie Montrose, the combination of Ronnie’s slammin' guitar riffs along with Sammy's high intensity vocals made for a classic album which has stood the test of time.
His solo career took off during the US bi-centennial year, 1976. Hagar enjoyed hits such as "Heavy Metal," "Three Lock Box," and perhaps his best-known song "I Can't Drive 55" -- a gripe against the federally imposed speed limit of 55 mph on U.S. highways.
Remember his album HSAS? Some of the artists featured were Neal Schon from the band Journey, Kenny Aaronson (who played with almost all the touring bands and started with Rick Derringer), Aaronson Shrieve formerly of Foghat, and Santana’s drummer Michael Shrieve. One song in particular, a cover of "Whiter Shade of Pale" received some airplay peaking at #94 on the Billboard Pop 100 Singles chart. Not too shabby of an album as I remember.
From 1985-1996, Hagar played with the Van Halen brothers -- one of the biggest and baddest acts of rock legend, thanks to Eddie’s incredible axmen skills and Alex superb double kick drum THUMPS! Anthony could play a little bass as well and still has a great backup voice. 5150, OU812, For Unlawful Carnal Knowledge, and Balance were the albums cut during Hagar’s time with the band. When I first heard the rumor they had joined, I thought the band should be call Van Hagar, but they didn’t listen to Thump’s advice.
I saw Sammy Hagar at Deer Creek (Verizon-branded outdoor venue) near Indy not too long ago. The dude can still rock and keep his tequila down. This tour has a good video out that I saw on HDNet. It was definitely a party every night for Sammy. I hope his liver can survive.
Chicken Foot
Sammy started a new group in 2008 called "Chickenfoot," which includes none other than the god of guitars, (sorry to that guy that did Layla) Joe Satriani, also Michael Anthony, and Red Hot Chili Peppers drummer Chad Smith. This is a really good album that should be in any rockers collection. The track "Sexy Little Thing" is one of my picks. Nice guitar lick Joe, but I wouldn't expect any less from you. We should talk...Give me a call.
Joe's growl coming out of his Ibenez is outstanding. There are some tones that are new to me, and many that are like his "Surfing With the Aliens" album. Of course this is a mainstay album for any guitarist.
Hot Rod Sammy
Sammy the “Red Rocker” also has been known to have some fast classic cars. He sold a very nice red Mustang 1967 Shelby GT500 for $250,000, which was far less than the $400K value. It looks like he is spending money on all kinds of racing teams. I am sure that would be fun.
Cabo Wabo
Then there is tequila… It is reported that Sammy recently sold a major portion (80%) of his tequila label, Cabo Wabo, for $80 million clams… not bad for drinking on stage to promote your own label. He had a bar set up on his last tour on the stage. It was tough to see the standards of the bartenders mixing his Cabo Wabo margaritas.
All in all Sammy, is a lucky little money machine with a humble and entertaining persona on stage. It is good to see him still rocking.
Now before I go... here's another Hot Guitar Chick Woman for you guys out there. If we get more female Klipsch fans, I will have to start having Amy post some hunks. Let's hear it ladies!
Well not the picture below... I mean REALLY...Sorry Blondies...
Part One - Ronnie Rips a Riff
If you were alive in the 70’s and more than just a pip squeak, you might remember the band Montrose. I don’t know if it was just my adolescence, but this is one the most memorable albums from my youth.
Ronnie Montrose can get some of the sweetest sounds out of his guitar, with the likes of “Bad Motor Scooter” shifting gears, “Good Rockin Tonight” (Roy Brown Cover), or my favorite “Rock Candy”… I love the sliding fret board action on this one.
As with many bands, a second good album is hard to come by, and Montrose was no exception. The third album had a good cover originally by Eddie Cochran in 1956 - “Twenty Flight Rock."
The only other memorable moment for Ronnie’s albums was installment 4, “Jump On It." I liked the cover, and of course bought it as a teenager, but was less than pleased at the track selection.
Discography:
Montrose / Montrose
1. "Rock the Nation" - 3:03
2. "Bad Motor Scooter" - 3:41
3. "Space Station #5" - 5:18
4. "I Don't Want It" - 2:58
5. "Good Rockin' Tonight" (Roy Brown cover) - 2:59
6. "Rock Candy" - 5:05
7. "One Thing on My Mind" - 3:41
8. "Make It Last" - 5:
Album Cover not worth posting...
Montrose / Paper Money
1. Underground" (I. Rappaport) [Chunky, Novi & Ernie Cover] 3:33
2. "Connection" (Mick Jagger, Keith Richards) [Rolling Stones Cover] 5:42
3. "The Dreamer" (Sammy Hagar, Ronnie Montrose) 4:05
4. "Starliner" (Ronnie Montrose) 3:36
5. "I Got the Fire" (Ronnie Montrose) 3:06
6. "Spaceage Sacrifice" (Sammy Hagar, Ronnie Montrose) 4:55
7. "We're Going Home" (Ronnie Montrose) 4:52
8. "Paper Money" (Sammy Hagar, Ronnie Montrose) 5:01
Montrose / Warner Brothers Presents… Montrose (For the lack of a better name)
1. "Matriarch"(Alcivar/Carmassi/Fitzgerald/James/Montrose)
2. "All I Need"(Alcivar/Carmassi/Fitzgerald/James/Montrose)
3. "Twenty Flight Rock" (Ned Fairchild)
4. "Whaler"(Alcivar/Carmassi/Fitzgerald/James/Montrose)
5. "Dancin' Feet"(Montrose/James)
6. "O Lucky Man" (Price)
7. "One And a Half" (Montrose)
8. "Clown Woman" (Montrose)
9. "Black Train" (Kardt/Richards/Fried)
Montrose / Jump On It (I liked the album cover!)
1. "Let's Go" (Bob James, Ronnie Montrose, Jim Alcivar, Denny Carmassi) 4:15
2. "What Are You Waitin' For?" (D. Hartman) 3:48
3. "Tuft-Sedge" (R. Montrose) 2:50
4. "Music Man" (R. Montrose) 4:16
5. "Jump on It" (James, R. Montrose, Alcivar, Carmassi) 3:37
6. "Rich Man" (Hartman) 4:24
7. "Crazy for You" (R. Montrose, I. "Chunky" Rappaport) 3:26
8. "Merry-Go-Round" (R. Montrose) 5:38
On a side note… Did you see this?
(Gratuitous Hot Guitar Chic)
A tribute to The Killers. This Las Vegas band has taken music where industrial punk and pop bands left off and raised it to a new level. Cold Play meets U2. Great videos have come out of these guys.
YouTube Videos:
Human
Mr. Brightside (Jealousy)
Read My Mind
All The Things That I Have Done (I've Got Soul)
All The Things That I Have Done II
When You Were Young
Somebody Told Me
Spaceman
Sam's Town
Bones
Tranquilize Ft. Lou Reed
Dustland Fairytale
Enjoy!
The big patent came in the mail this weekend. When it rains it poors...
This one is the utility patent for several eartip designs. Some of which we have not made yet.
And of course more prior art claims to be referenced...
It may look trivial to the untrained eye but the shape of your eartips is paramount to good comfort!
The design below addresses the second bend in your ear.
Most of these designs are not yet in the marketplace, but as the demand increases I am sure you will see more announced for sale.
Look what Professor Thump got in the mail Saturday folks... Another Design Patent! This particular patent is for the dual flange version of our Klipsch Oval Eartip.
We had to defend several cited references with the government because the Utility Patent (number not issued yet) is such a broad claim. Hats off to Michelle Bleiweiss Blanchard for signing up many Audiologists to testify to the benefits of the oval shape design for improved comfort levels.
Check out all the references that we were sited. These are all the references that we had to refute!
Is there any question as to why you should buy Klipsch Headphones?
So why don't you....."Stick It In Your Ear!" 
It is getting warm outside and the motorcycles are starting to come into play. So I thought I would get everyone in the cycle mood........
Here are a couple of cool bikes that I shot at the Hard Rock Hotel in Vegas... Maybe as cool as our own Klipsch bike. What do you think?
Do you remember this video from OK Go? I thought this was one of the funnier creative videos of its day. Who would have thought to dress up in wallpaper and shoot a music video, other than the Pink Panther himself?
Here are some pictures for the Hard Rock Hotel in Las Vegas. The picture below without the flash reveals that there is more behind the window than a bunch of wall paper.
The telecaster and the amplifiers where all covered in the paper. I wonder if they were just renting this equipment. It sounds like something a pop band might do. Not that any of that sort of thing ever happened to me... Noooo…
For more entertainment check out this Rube Goldberg Machine in this video:
OK Go - This Too Shall Pass
Continuing the series on the celebration of women rockers, I give you more from the history collection at the Hard Rock Hotel in Las Vegas.
Christina Aguilera is one of the greater female vocal talents. I would love to hear her do a blues or jazz album because she has more talent then the pop genre she is pigeonholed into. She is known for her risqué attire, which most men can appreciate. Exhibit A: The still image below is from her "Dirty" video, where she wore this rather interesting costume:
The mannequin does not do her justice!
Britney Spears wore this dress in a video. I can't say I am much of a fan, but I can appreciate the dress... or lack thereof. I'm not sure how functional it would be. I doubt she wore it grocery shopping. Wait, do you think she buys groceries? Anyway, it is certainly a unique dress, to say the least.
Katy Perry is another female artist who I'm not very familiar with (and I am clearly out of my element when it comes to female fashion), but I thought most Klipsch Fans would enjoy seeing the gear. I dig the boots.
An last but not least, here is a trinket of Madonna's from her book titled "Sex." Apparently, I need to go to the library more.
I don't have much to say about Madonna, other than she steps over more lines of restriction in society than I ever have. I applaud her for using our freedom of speech to its fullest extent.
It is great to see all the memorabilia from the Hard Rock Hotel in Las Vegas. I am always surprised at how much they own and how some of it is just hung on the wall. I can only imagine the amount of money they paid for some items. A lot of the guitars on the walls would be valued between $10K and $500K, yet they are just hung on the wall collecting dust.
Joan Jett items are on display there also. She may not be one of the most popular artists a the Hard Rock but she has definitely made her contributions towards female that rockers. One of my favorite articles is her leather coat. That is one Bad Ass coat! Great graphics and detail to the design.
She was also known for her tight leather or rubber pants. There is definite cool factor with these clothes.
Joan Jett still performs to this day, and need I say she is one of the more well preserved rockers of the last several decades. You go get em Joan!
http://www.joanjett.com/
Female rockers are controversial. Some people feel that a woman leading the rock stage is a mistake. Rockers generally are a strong and powerful figure that emulate strength through their music. A role that some feel should not go to a woman. Some women tend to not look natural with a guitar slung around their neck. The way they move might be considered too feminine. I on the other hand find that there is a majical intrigue watching a female rock the stage.
Let's take the band "Heart" for an instance?
Nancy Wilson takes charge of the stage. She not only moves well to the emotion but is also a fine guitarist; whether it is an electric or an acoustic. Who can match Ann Wilson's vocal talent? Not many.
In the days of metal hair bands, high register pitches were required for vocals. Who better than a gutsy woman. Sure they may not get as gritty as a Dee Snider from Twisted Sister did, but they have the ability to span the range of genres from balad to full on crank!
So hats off to Ann and Nancy Wilson for being true Rock n Roll leaders for women of the 70's and 80's.
Novoselic and Cobain met in 1985 in their hometown of Aberdeen, Wash., a rural logging community outside Seattle. Their first musical incarnation as the Stiff Woodies featured Cobain on drums, Novoselic on bass and whoever happened to be around on guitar. By 1987 they had morphed into Nirvana; Cobain moved to vocals and guitar, and drummer Chad Channing was added. Nirvana soon gained the attention of the hip Seattle label Sub Pop and their debut album, Bleach, recorded for just over $600, was released in June 1989. Dave Grohl of the Washington, D.C. hardcore band Scream replaced Channing in September 1990.
During the summer of 1991 the band opened for Sonic Youth on their European Festival tour. Nirvana's landmark performance at the Reading Festival was featured in the documentary "1991: The Year Punk Broke" and marked the beginning of their worldwide recognition. Ironically, 1991 marked the birth of Nirvanamania and the beginning of Cobain's mental and physical deterioration. The group signed with Geffen Records to record their much anticipated second album, and when Nevermind was released in the fall of 1991, it symbolically knocked Michael Jackson's Dangerous off the top of the U.S. album charts. The success of the album, which went triple platinum, was fueled by MTV's incessant airplay of "Smells Like Teen Spirit." The song was hailed as the anthem of the grunge generation and its appeal broadened the band's fan base to include mainstream jocks, metalheads and alternative wannabes; the very people Nirvana music was supposed to alienate.
Rumors of Cobain's heroin use were ever-present and as the band grew into a multi-million dollar commercial entity, he began to withdraw into his own drug-induced world. The band's stability was questioned in the wake of a variety of bizarre stunts including Cobain's penchant for showing up at concerts in women's clothing and mocking his way through songs, and Novoselic and Grohl's nationally televised kiss following a Saturday Night Live performance. Cobain's marriage to hardcore diva Courtney Love in 1992 only fueled the negative publicity fire.
NIRVANA MEMBERS
Kurt Cobain - vocals, guitar (1985-1994)
Krist Novoselic - bass (1985-1994)
Aaron Burckhard - drums (1985-1986)
Chad Channing - drums (1986-1990)
Dale Crover - drums (1988)
Dave Foster - drums (1988)
Jason Everman - guitar (1989)
Dan Peters - drums (1990)
Dave Grohl - drums, backing vocals (1990-1994)
John Duncan - guitar (1993)
Pat Smear - guitar (1993-1994)
This Mustang Fender is at the Hard Rock Hotel in Vegas. The picture says it all...
DISCOGRAPHY
Bleach (1989)
Nevermind (1991)
Hormoaning (1992)
Incesticide (1992)
In Utero (1993)
Unplugged in New York (1994)
Muddy Banks (1996)
Nirvana (2002)
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