SPIDERS & SNAKES 2017 Publicity Photo with Lizzie Grey (3rd from Left)
Sunset Strip music legend and long-time SPIDERS & SNAKES frontman Lizzie Grey – probably best known for penning the MÖTLEY CRUE hit song “Public Enemy #1” – passed away in his sleep yesterday morning at a Las Vegas hospital surrounded by his wife Jennifer and daughters Ariel and Annabelle. Lizzie (aka Stephen Perry) had long been suffering from a rare brain disorder known as Lewy Body Disease and had been undergoing treatment for years. Surviving are his son Alex Perry, mother Jeanne Perry, brother Robert Perry and sister Susan Brandon.
“Lizzie was not only a legend in the world of music, but an amazing father, husband, and friend to many, and words cannot express how much we will miss him” said his wife Jennifer. Lizzie’s bandmember of 27+ years in SPIDERS & SNAKES, Tim Yasui, added “it was a blessing to witness to how many adoring fans Lizzie had during our 3 decades together as SPIDERS & SNAKES – it never ceased to amaze me that where ever we were on the road, people would approach us with stories about wanting to play guitar because of Lizzie – he literally influenced an entire generation of musicians from all over the world – and the world is a much better place because of him”
Lizzie Grey first hit the Hollywood spotlight in the late ‘70s with the band LONDON that he formed with Nikki Sixx – a band that Sixx would soon depart to form his own band which became MÖTLEY CRUE. Grey remained on and off with LONDON for the next decade, recording several albums before leaving the very band that he founded in 1988 to start another band called ULTRA POP. ULTRA POP recorded two critically-acclaimed albums back to back in ’88 and ’89, before changing the name of the band to SPIDERS & SNAKES in 1990. From 1990 to 2017, SPIDERS & SNAKES recorded nine (9) studio albums, a cover song compilation album as well as a live album. In 2018, with Lizzie’s progressing complications from Lewy Body Disease, the band collectively decided to call it quits rather than moving on without Lizzie.
SPIDERS & SNAKES surviving band members Phil St Vincent (bass and vocals), Chris Sheridan (Guitar and vocals) and Yasui (drums and vocals) will reunite for one night this fall/winter at the Whisky A Go Go in Hollywood to raise money and awareness for Lewy Body Disease. An announcement on the date and its specifics will be posted on https://www.facebook.com/Spiders-and-Snakes-208670952570091/
For more information on how to donate to money towards finding a cure for Lewy Body Disease, please visit https://www.lbda.org/
Jimmy Kay from Canada’s The Metal Voice recently spoke to MEGADETH bassist David Ellefson and his Business partner Thom Hazaert about the new Dave Ellefson Autobiography that they both co-wrote “More Life With Deth” (out July 16 via Jawbone Press) and companion Album “Sleeping Giants” ( July 19 on Combat Records). Ellefson also spoke about his early days in Megadeth during the Combat Records era and his drug addiction and recovery.
Watch the interview here:
When asked about the difference between this new Autobiography compared to the first one
“The first book was a little more focused on David’s spirituality and sobriety and it talked about Megadeth from a little bit of a generic backstory, it didn’t really get too deep into a lot of Megadeth’s topics. This time we set out to make just a Rock and Roll book. I would say this book is like a superhero movie origin story. I acquired the Combat Records name and that gave us the opportunity to go back to the beginning again and really tell that origin story of Megadeth during the Combat era. But this time we have some other guest voices in the book too giving their perspective. We really did a good job of chronicling the early Megadeth history but with some other people that were there too, to give a different perspective and validate everything what was said and what went on.” Thom Hazaert
When asked about Acquiring the rights to the legendary Combat Records name
“Combat Records had a whole generation of punk and thrash fans. When Thom approached me with the idea I started thinking about Combat and all a sudden it took me all the way back to 1983 and 84 especially 84 with Megadeth. That was when we started having conversations with record labels to sign Megadeth and Combat Records was the one that won out and that’s what Killing is my Business came out on. So in the book, it largely took me back to telling the earliest years of the Megadeth story and you know it that is a period of time when there’s not a lot of information. “ David Ellefson
When asked why Megadeth broke up in 2002 and why the band reformed in 2004 without Ellefson
“Dave Mustiane quit the band, he folded the band and I mean he basically quit. So again if quit and we didn’t have a quarterback, so there is no one to throw the ball so essentially the band was done. However in 2004 Mustaine reformed the group but suddenly all the business dealings were changed and everything was different and I was not on board with it, so I didn’t I agree to it and they basically moved forward without me being part of the band .Part of me was kind of relieved because it was a lot, I mean Dave and I have been going almost 20 years at that point. It’s just a lot you know you’re creative people, I mean Megadeth is a real rock and roll band man it’s dangerous, its dynamic, its charismatic, it’s all the great things that make great rock and roll but the Train was always ready to fall off the tracks. So I just kind of moved on, I just got busy with my life and moved on. I wasn’t gonna sit around and cry about it I was a young man with a young family I was in my 30’s and we’ve made money, we’ve done some things but I was young I wasn’t ready to retire. I wasn’t done with my life’s purpose. Young families are expensive and there’s a lot of life ahead, so I had to get up and get to work and I think that largely is the story of the next the next phase of my life in this new book. “ David Ellefson
When asked about being broke and stranded on tour during the Killing is my Business tour
“1985 June- July where we’re opening for labelmates Exciter and the tour dates were just canceling left and right because the agents was just horrible. We called the label and said we are broke and they said you guys just need to go home and get jobs and we were like we are on tour supporting your album? David Ellefson
When asked about the Motley Crue Biopic Dirt and how David Ellefson was there when Nikki Sixx temporary died
“I was there, Steven Adler and I were friends and I didn’t really know the other guys too much. I was at the Franklin Plaza Hotel and I was up there and Fred Coury from Cinderella. I’d never met Nikki before and we’re just partying and Nikki come busting into the room and I wanted to see if I could get some drugs off of him but they didn’t have any so I guess they were looking for some too. At the wee hours of the night they left and went in the room next door and I mean literally I don’t know 15 minutes later a girl comes running oh my god, I think he’s dead. You could hear the sirens. Fred looked at me and goes, you got a car, get me the hell out of here. It was pretty hardcore stuff man thank God I really wasn’t around it, I mean I had no part of it.” David Ellefson
When asked about the songs on new Album Sleeping Giants
“It was during the Basstory tour last year I was getting up on stage every night and doing a couple of songs with David. We have a studio in Tampa called Mastersound and we’re like let’s go into the studio and just write a song for fun. So we went in the studio and jammed for 20 minutes and Dave had the riff for the new song Vultures and we wrote the song literally in a half an hour. Dave went in and tracked his rhythm guitar and his bass and I tracked the vocals that same day and it was done. And at the time we said let’s just take use that song and use it as a free download with the new book. That’s how it all evolved. So then we wrote another two new songs and I kind of said Dave don’t you have some F5 demos or some other stuff . So he dug up all these extras he had, all these killer F5 demos that were never released and then Dave say’s I do have this song with John Bush on vocals, I’m like are you fucking kidding me? So this new Sleeping Giants album has new songs and has cool rarities from David Ellefson’s career that all tie into the book.” Thom Hazaert
When asked about considering Annihilator’s Jeff Waters as Megadeth’s guitarist in the early days
“Jeff was and is a kick-ass rock star lead guitar player and a you know he’s the founder of his band. He’s the writer, he’s the whole musical muscle of that group and you know for him to leave that would mean to leave all of his work behind to come and be the guitar player and Megadeth.
Annihilator were doing very well back in the day so, right guy, wrong time. Jeff is friends with me and Dave Mustaine, we’re good buddies today but sometimes things just aren’t meant to happen at that particular time. ” David Ellefson
When asked about overcoming his drug addictions
“I was on the drug and alcohol train for ten years. At the beginning it was a lot of fun. I mean it was kind of the social lubricant you know everyone around doing it. When I moved to LA in 1983 cocaine was on the cover of Time magazine that year. It was just the era you know that was the 80’s. it was sex, drugs and Rock and Roll. I hit a wall when I was 23 during So Far, So good So What album cycle and I talk about in the book. I had to get clean, it wasn’t going go away. I came out the other side of it. Today being in Megadeth and doing Basstory tour we travel the world and I’m able to talk either publicly or privately with people about adiction and it’s a cool platform to be able to help people if people reach out and need help.” David Ellefson
“Sleeping Giants” will be a retrospective featuring several new tracks, plus a collection of demos and unreleased material from F5 and David’s other projects “Sleeping Giants” will also include a second bonus disc, featuring a compilation of EMP and Combat Records artists, including LAST CRACK, DEAD BY WEDNESDAY, DOYLE, Mark Slaughter, RON KEEL BAND, HATCHET, WRATH, Marc Rizzo, and more.
Album was Produced by Ellefson and Thom Hazaert (who also provides vocals for the new tracks), with a multitude of guests, including legendary MC Darryl “DMC” McDaniels, who shares vocals with Hazaert on the title track, Mark Tremonti, Eric “A.K” Knutson (FLOTSAM AND JETSAM), Ken Mary (ALICE COOPER, FLOTSAM AND JETSAM), Steve Conley (FLOTSAM AND JETSAM, F5), Ethan Brosh, Ron “Bumblefoot” Thal (GUNS N’ ROSES), Dave Sharpe and Opus Lawrence of DEAD BY WEDNESDAY, Illias Papadakis (MEMORAIN), Dave McClain (MACHINE HEAD, SACRED REICH), Andy Martongelli (ALTITUDES AND ATTITUDE) and more, plus a remix by “Game Of Thones” star Kristian Nairn (HODOR), and unreleased songwriting demos featuring vocals by John Bush (ARMORED SAINT, ex-ANTHRAX), and David Glen Eisley (HOUSE OF LORDS, GIUFFRIA).
Disk 1
01. Vultures
02. Sleeping Giants (ft. DMC)
03. Hammer (Comes Down) (ft. Mark Tremonti, Chris Poland, and Eric AK)
04. Vultures (Kristian Nairn Remix)
05. If You Were God (ft. John Bush) *
F5 Demos
06. Deadman Rise
07. I Fall
08. Bleeding
09. Why Can’t We Die
10. Dying On The Vine
11. Faded
12. Undeniable
13. Feel Your Pain
14. Out In The Rain (ft. David Glen Eisley) *
15. Voices (ft. David Glen Eisley) *
* Previously unreleased demo
Disc 2: EMP/Combat Artist Sampler
01. LAST CRACK – “Golden Age”
02. CO-OP (ft. Joe Perry) – “Howl”
03. GREEN DEATH (ft. David Ellefson) – “Pure Torture”
04. SEMBLANT – “Scarlet Heritage – Legacy of Blood Pt. III”
05. HATCHET – “Back Into Dust”
06. MARC RIZZO – “Downside Up”
07. MARK SLAUGHTER – “Conspiracy”
08. DOYLE (ft. Alissa White-Gluz) – “Kiss Me As We Die”
09. DEAD BY WEDNESDAY – “You & Die”
10. EVIL UNITED (ft. Jason McMaster) – “Operation Overlord”
11. SUNFLOWER DEAD – “Turn Away” (Radio Edit)
12. ARISE IN CHAOS – “The Divine”
13. DOLL SKIN – “Daughter”
14. PSYKOTRIBE (ft. David Ellefson) – “End It”
15. ARCHER NATION – “Severed”
16. RON KEEL BAND – “Fight Like A Band”
17. WRATH – “Draw Blood
Jimmy Kay from Canada’s The Metal Voice spoke to Canadian Metal pioneer John Mikl Thor. Thor spoke about his new documentary Return of the Thunderhawk and new album Hammer of Justice, how Manowar and Motley Crue‘s Vince Neil copied his image and competing with Lou Ferrigno Arnold Schwarzenegger in bodybuilding competitions in the 70’s. Deadline Records will be releasing a CD/DVD combo pack of new music as well as Return of the Thunderhawk on April 26, 2019. The film is currently being booked in major markets across North America including Seattle and Hollywood. In support of the new release, Thor will embark on a massive tour of the United States beginning in March.
Watch the interview here:
When asked about his first documentary I Am Thor and his new documentary Return of the Thunderhawk
“Thunderhawk picks up where ‘I am Thor’ (2015) left off. I Am Thor followed my my life in the rock business, as a youth and moving forward through the years. Through the ups and downs, the obstacles, the triumphs, the losses and the triumphs again. The movie ended off where I didn’t know if I was going to continue to perform anymore. I was kind of thinking of getting out of the business but what happens is I continue. That’s where the cameras follow me on a worldwide tour with return of the Thunder Hawk. Also I pick up a new band younger guys. A lot of strange and crazy things happen to us on that tour so it’s uh you know, one story ends and other one picks up. ”
When asked about the new album’s musical direction and the new documentary DVD
“Return of the Thunder Hawk is coming out on DVD April 26 and it will be a complement to the new album ‘Hammer of Justice’. This is gonna be a package you buy the CD you get a DVD, plus there’s going to be screenings across North America of the documentary and also in Europe and the festivals. The musical direction will be power metal with sing-along choruses like when you’re in the arena and you want everybody to sing with you, like the Vikings would do it back in the day when they were going into battle. The new album musical style will have lots of heavy rifts I think when you hear the songs on Hammer of Justice you’ll say there are incredible powerful metal riffs that will hit you right in the face. ”
When asked if he will continue on performing feats of strength on this tour
“Now I see the strength is in the music. So I don’t need to do feats of strength like bending steel anymore and smashing bricks on my head. But I guarantee you it will be a show you’ll never forget it’s gonna be an amazing show, very theatrical and the strength will be in the music. Everywhere we go the reaction is tremendous. ”
When asked about how he feels about Manowar and their image compared to Thors
“We were ten years ahead of Manowar. There’s a lot of things Manowar implement in their show like the Iron Cross fist, it’s the way you hold your fist up, I did that way back just look at the Thor’s Sleeping Giant music video. I respect Manowar very much and they have a tremendous show but they are far from original. I’m have been doing the whole warrior rock / gladiator concept way back before Manowar came out. I was way ahead of them. Also Vince Neil of Motley Crue took my image on my album Keep the Dogs away and used it on the Motely Crue’s album Shout at the Devil. We were ahead of the time nobody was doing stuff like what we were doing in 1973.”
When asked about competing with Lou Ferrigno Arnold Schwarzenegger and if they got along back in the body building competition days
“Lou Ferrigno and I competed, first in Mr. Teenage American in 1971 and he and I were the top guys and I came runner-up to him because he was pretty amazing and we completed again for Mr. Universe in Switzerland in 1973. It’s interesting that he became the Hulk and I became Thor and Arnold became Conan. Arnold was more of a a standoffish kind of guy, Lou was more more friendly.”
When asked about the licensing of the name Thor and if he owned the name
“I know a lot about copyright, I have trademarks. I own Thor the Rock warrior, the Metal Avenger and actually over the years I’ve developed a common law rights right or the celebrity rights of Thor. I’ve been doing the Thor character since 1973. However as you know the I am Thor movie becoming prominent Marvel and I did have a little bit of a tassel and we ended up where I won the case in court. We have a contract where we coincide with each other and it’s understood they are the Mighty Thor or Thor, part of the Marvel Universe and my Thor is for the Rock Warrior for the Metal Avenger, it’s trademarked and copyrighted and we coincide with each other. ”
Jimmy Kay from Canada’s The Metal Voice recently spoke to The Dead Daises Singer (Ex-Motley Crue) John Corabi. He spoke about The Dead Daises upcoming album BURN IT DOWN, his Motley Crue era, his days in Ratt, Mick Mars Solo Album and the up coming Motley Crue film
When asked about the upcoming The Dead Daisies album Burn it down
“This record is a bit heavier than anything we have done in the past but not heavy in the sense of the melody is gone. There is still melody there but it’s kind of like an old school Black Sabbath, Led Zeppelin, AC/DC kind of heavy. It was one of those things where you kind of get in a groove everybody’s got a ton of riffs a ton of ideas and you just don’t know what direction the records going to go until the light bulb goes off. I’m pretty pleased with the album”
When asked what was it like to join Motley Crue
Motley Crue had done the Dr Feelgood tour and they were relatively, relatively is a big word, sober when I joined the band. They weren’t really partying. When I first joined everybody was trying to keep their act together and eventually as we got rolling everyone started falling into old habits. I didn’t know what to expect. No disrespect to the band I was familiar with their videos on MTV. I got to be honest with you but a lot of the stuff in the 80’s kind of went over my head. I was into classic 70’s bands. I had to ask them for the records when it came to putting together a set list. It was funny I had been in the band two and a half years and they were laughing their ass off, wait a minute you don’t have any of our records and I’m like no, not really. Tommy Lee said have you ever seen us live before? No, and they were laughing their ass off, like OMG we picked a guy to sing in our band that wasn’t even a fan of the band.”
When asked what were his audition songs for Motley Crue
“The first two songs I ever sang for Motley Crue, which were covers, the first one was Helter Skelter and the second one was Jailhouse Rock. I knew those. I knew the original versions. The first Motley originals I sang were Dr Feelgood, Live Wire and Shout at the Devil.”
When asked how it went down when they let him go from Motley Crue
“When we were writing the next album Generation Swine. their was rumblings on the street. the thing that kind of bugged me about the exit wasn’t about them bringing Vince Neil back. I knew at any moment the band could Kiss and make up. the thing that bugged me is nobody from the management company came to me and leveled with me. They eventually told me the day Vince was coming back but their was months prior to that where people were talking about Vince coming back and I would ask management about it and they would say no it’s never going to happen. I just wished that everybody could have been a little more on the table about everything.”
When asked if he thinks he will be portrayed in the upcoming Motley Crue Movie THE DIRT
” If the movie is true to the book then their will be a small segment where it talks about me but I am not expecting it.”
The Dead Daises will be releasing their new album, “Burn It Down” on Friday, April 6 via Spitfire Music/SPV.
The Dead Daises “Burn It Down” track listing:
01. Resurrected
02. Rise Up
03. Burn It Down
04. Judgement Day
05. What Goes Around
06. Bitch
07. Set Me Free
08. Dead And Gone
09. Can’t Take It With You
10. Leave Me Alone
Issue #5 of the newly launched UK based Rock Candy Magazine features an exclusive candid interview with legendary rock manager Doc McGhee in which he tells how out-of-control MÖTLEY CRÜE bassist Nikki Sixx’s outlandish behaviour on board the bullet train in Japan got both of them thrown in jail by the country’s riot police.
The latest issue of Rock Candy Magazine, featuring Ozzy Osbourne and Randy Rhoads on the cover, is available in shops around the world via distribution from industry giant Marketforce. Besides our massive Randy Rhoads feature, it also includes an exclusive behind-the-scenes feature on what really went on during the Crüe’s wild ‘Girls Girls Girls’ tour in 1987. Including new interviews with vocalist Vince Neil, manager McGhee and members of the tour team, together with exclusive photos from legendary photographer Mark Weiss, the piece exposes the madness of life on the road with the house band of hair metal.
Exclusive Issue # 5 Doc McGhee article preview:
“We played Japan in December of ’87 and took the bullet train from Tokyo to Osaka for a show,” explains McGhee. “On the way back Nikki was all messed up. Mick and Nikki started getting into each other and Nikki threw doughnuts at Mick while he was drinking a bottle of Jack. There wasn’t a fistfight, because Mick couldn’t fight anybody. Nikki threw a bottle and hit a Japanese guy in the back of the head. Blood was pumping and they ended up dragging the guy out like he’d survived a battle. When we got to Tokyo there were a couple of hundred Japanese police with riot gear on waiting for us. I went up and said, ‘I’m Doc McGhee, the manager of Mötley Crüe.’ They grabbed me, threw me on the ground and zip-tied my hands behind my back. Then they went and got Nikki. They dragged him out and threw him beside me and took the two of us off to jail. We sat there for four or five hours and then had to write a letter apologizing before they would let us out. If it wasn’t for our promoter Mr Udo we’d probably still be there. Mr Udo went through hell on that tour. He came down and sorted things out so that all we had to do was write that letter of apology. But Nikki didn’t want to do it. I wanted to kill him, because I’m in jail because of him.”
Read the whole of this revealing article, and many more fascinating features, in Issue 5 of Rock Candy Mag. Available now in UK retailers, on it’s way to shops around the world via export, and direct from us online, here: Official Rock Candy Magazine website
Issue 5 features dozens of major features and interviews with legendary and obscure acts, including:
RANDY RHOADS
MÖTLEY CRÜE
CHEAP TRICK
RAINBOW
BLACK SABBATH
BOSTON
BON SCOTT
ANTHRAX
WHITE LION
STRYPER
ZZ TOP
JUDAS PRIEST
GUNS N ROSES
HEART
DIAMOND HEAD
THE GODZ
BOB KULICK
SLAUGHTER
IAN ASTBURY
TEXXAS JAM
For The Metal VoiceGiles Lavery (Dragonsclaw) caught up with current BONFIRE and former ACCEPT singer David Reece in Essen, Germany and spoke to him about Bonfire’s new album “Pearls”, his new project Reece Percudani Group (RPG), a David Reece greatest hits free download package and his wild memories of hanging out with MÖTLEY CRÜE during the Theater of Pain tour.
When asked about the New Bonfire double CD entitled Pearls, a re-recording of Bonfire classics
“Hans Ziller went back to the Strike Ten days, a few other albums not super well known and basically they chose these songs that are on the record, an album of hard rock songs and one with ballads with symphony. New mix, new production, new mastering and we gave it a new twist but we stayed with the classic sound of Bonfire.”
When asked about his new project Reece Percudani Group (RPG)
It’s with Mario Percudani who produced the new Pearls record. We’re writing songs, we’re playing some live gigs and we’re planning on releasing an album called Double Down in November of 2016.
When asked about his memories hanging out with Motley Crue on Tour
“In the early 80’s I was invited by a nefarious certain individual who was supplying various ingredients to Tommy Lee and Nikki Sixx and he asked me to join on one of his endeavours on the Theater of Pain tour. Being a young aspiring Rock singer, hey I am going to be hanging out with Motley Crue for Three Weeks. So of course I obliged I jumped on an airplane, I shouldn’t have but it was the only way to gain access to the hostility room instead of the hospitality room for Nikki Sixx. And that is what it said I remember walking back stage it said Hostility room and I opened the door and Nikki was there just trashing the room he was out of his mind. “
“Boys and girls this is a message, don’t do what I did. I brought along my demo of songs that I recorded and as the night would progress after a Motley Crue show we would sit up in our hotel rooms until the sun was coming up and I would start playing cassettes of my songs to them. And of course they were like yeah yeah yeah, that’s great give me another one (sarcastic). So my advice to you is stay the course do it the right way, cause when they are at that level they are only thinking of only themselves and you should really only concentrate on your music.”
Watch the interview here:
For a Free download of David Reece’s Greatest hits Album ‘Reece Milestones’:
The Metal Voice Facebook page (Drop Box Link), HERE.
or
Go to The Official David Reece Facebook page (Drop Box link), HERE.
For fans of melodic hard rock, the name David Reece will be a familiar one. Since bursting onto the scene as the then-new front man for German legends ACCEPT.
David Reece has released no less than 15 full-length recordings. His diverse catalog encompasses his early ’90s success with BANGALORE CHOIR, known for their MTV hit “Loaded Gun”, The powerful modern metal project SIRCLE OF SILENCE, numerous solo releases, and most recently David has been fronting another legendary German act, BONFIRE.
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