Jeb Wright Interview
Jeb Wright with Rob Halford
Jeb Wright is the founder and editor of the excellent website Classic Rock Revisited. His passion for rock music flows through every review and interview he pens. He has just published a book that collects some of the best interviews from the site: From The Vaults Series 1 – Stadium Rock. Visit www.classicrockrevisited.com.
When where you first ‘introduced’ to rock music?
I first got into music when I was seven years old and ‘Bad Bad Leroy Brown’ by Jim Croce came on the radio. From there, I got into band’s my older sister introduced me too. Styx, Peter Frampton and the Little River Band were albums she had at the time. In 1978, I was in six or seventh grade and I went to a party and a girl who was there had an older sister who snuck me some whiskey. I got drunk and he cranked up Double Live Gonzo by Ted Nugent. THAT was the moment it all changed for me. Around this time, I also learned my grandparent’s neighbour was the guitar player for Kansas, Rich Williams, parents. It almost seems destined that I end up doing what I am doing. Mrs. Williams gave me all of Kansas’ records and t-shirts and took me over to her house often to see the Gold and Platinum records that her son had given her. It was a life affirming event. I fell in love with music at that time. I became a regular album junkie at Paul’s Records & Tapes in Topeka, Kansas. I went in every week and bought at least one record. I would buy stuff if I liked the album cover! I discovered all of the earlier bands that I had missed out on and began a love affair that is still going strong today.
Tell me about the early days of Classic Rock Revisited. Why did you decide to create a website dedicated to rock?
I play guitar and in the late 1990’s I got sick of all of the major media outlets covering bands that new three chords and one scale. I hated what happened to rock at the time. All the bands I loved were considered dinosaur bands. I got angry. My wife got tired of my bitching about it and told me to do something about it. I explain this all in my new book, Classic Rock Revisited: From The Vault Series 1: Stadium Rock. Basically, I bought a CD that was a new release by a classic band, called the publicist and told her that I didn’t have any experience and lived in Kansas but wanted to do something to make a difference. She took a chance on my and sent me some CDs. That is how www.classicrockrevisited.com came into existence in 1999.
In the early days what type of feedback did you get when the site went live?
We got good feedback. I think people like my style of writing and how I interviewed people. I am not a jerk, journalist who is out to get a guy angry to get a good quote. My style is as a fan of the music but also as a PR guy for their new releases and a historian for the past accomplishments and tragedies that have happened to these artists. My style was a bit softer back in 1999 and that is why I included several years in the new book. My Ted Nugent interview is from 1999 and it is quite different that the later years included in the book.
Was it difficult trying to get PR and Management people to give you review material/press tickets, etc?
It was difficult at first. As the site grew, it became easier. The first place that gave us concert tickets was George Thorogood and Steve Miller. They were playing an outdoor show in Kansas City. We bought two tickets just in case we didn’t get the ones they said we would get. When we went to will call and they were there, I was like a kid at Christmas. The show had reserve seats as well as lawn seats. We went up to the top of the hill and gave a dad and his son the tickets we had bought. The dad was taking his son to his first concert. They moved down to the better seats that we had bought and didn’t need.
Review materials were not hard to get. In fact, I have always got way more than I can deal with and it just seems to get heavier and heavier every year. I love music but sometimes going to the mailbox is frightening. While it can get overwhelming, every day is a bit like Christmas!
Who was the first artist you interviewed for the site?
The first interview I did was Roger Earl of Foghat. I love that band and Foghat Live is one of my favourite albums of all time. I knew their history and we hit it off well. Roger, and his wife, have become friends of mine. We have dined out at BB Kings in New York City, and Roger and Linda actually had me over for dinner the time I was in New York City. They are great people and good cooks.
How many visitors do you get per month?
I am not sure. I don’t follow that. My wife is the webmaster. She tells me we get 2.4 million unique IDs a year. Whatever that means, I don’t know! I am not an internet kind of guy. I just use the site as my medium to do my interviews.
Which artists have given you the best interviews?
There have been so many awesome interviews that I can’t give that a good answer without leaving a bunch of people out. Kansas is always great. Nugent it great but the challenge with him is to control the interview and not let him just talk for an hour! I have had wonderful interviews with Deep Purple, Paul Rodgers, members of Lynyrd Skynyrd… I go into each interview with the goal of getting the best I can out of the people. I would have to add Rob Halford of Priest and Ian Anderson of Jethro Tull to that list. They are great interviews every time.
And the worst?
Musicians are people and some people can be more boring than others. So, anyone who is not into it is a rough interview. I have had two interviews that started out horrible. One ended bad and the other turned out to be cool. I interviewed Don Dokken once, and I don’t know if he was hung over or tired or what but it was horrible. I had interviewed him before and he was very talkative. This time, however, he was giving one word or one sentence answers. I finally said, “Look if this is not a good time then lets just forget it.” He tried to say it was fine but I was done and we ended the interview.
The other time was with the late Kevin DuBrow of Quiet Riot. He had a ton of interviews that day and was burned out. He was giving uninspired, short answers and I confronted him. I said, “Man, we may need to reschedule.” He said he was sorry and we started just shooting the shit and we discovered that we both loved bands like Blodwyn Pig and Humble Pie. He opened up and we did an hour and a half long interview. We hit it off and traded emails. When I was in Vegas I would meet up with Kevin and eat dinner. The last time was about a year before he died. We ate muscles in olive oil, something I had never had and now love. I miss Kevin. He may have been famous for being a loudmouth but he was also a huge music fan and when he died, I was very sad. I still miss him.
Is there any artist you haven’t interviewed but would like to?
Darn right! Any member of Pink Floyd, Led Zeppelin or AC/DC would make my day. I would like to interview Joan Jett too. I could add a few more to my list… Steven Tyler, Billy Gibbons and Sharon Osbourne would top my list as well. Oh yeah, and Bruce Dickinson. What is up with that? Why hasn’t Bruce done an interview with me?
Is running the site a full time job? What is your daily routine?
I have a decent day job or I would be doing the site full time. As it stands, I like the routine pay check of my day job as a Customer Service Manager for a custom blowmolding company. However, it makes it tough to get things done. My daily routine is to work, come home, hang with the family and every minute I can run the site. I work a lot of weekends and nights to do Classic Rock Revisited. One day I hope to be a full time writer but with two kids and the need for insurance and college money it does not seem to be able to happen yet.
What have been some of the more memorable experiences of working in the music business?
I have been invited to attend each of the three VH1 Rock Honours. Two have been in Las Vegas and one has been in Los Angeles. I am going to the NAMM show this year in California. I have been able to interview Judas Priest’s Rob Halford in person at Epic Records. I have done a lot of travelling with the site and make many friends doing what I do. I have made friends with some of the artists and had the honour of sharing a backstage dinner with them or hanging out with them. It has been a dream come true. Every time there are tickets and passes for me at a show I feel like I have died and gone to heaven. If you would have told me when I was 15 that I would meet the bands I have met then I would have told you that you were crazy. I got to meet Ozzy, twice! I got to interview him backstage at the Rock Honors. I interviewed Pete Townshend and Roger Daltry at Rock Honors on the red carpet. My first guitar god, Ted Nugent, knows my name. How cool is that?
Do you have any entertaining rock ‘n roll stories?
There have been some funny moments. CC Deville of Poison came to a ‘Meet & Greet’ wearing a sing that said, “Autographs: $2. Photo $2. Hand shake $2. Full Monty, all three: $6.” A roadie was standing next to him in a Poison uniform ringing a bell.
I saw Vince Neil leave backstage with two roadies while he was wearing a towel over his head. No one else was backstage but he ran off like he was Elvis. What an ego. There are many more. Backstage has become more about food and family than sex and drugs for Classic Rock artists. It is a serene place for the most parts. Some bands are still wild but many are not. I remember when Tommy Skeoch was still with Tesla and having drug problems and vocalist Jeff Keith came to the ‘Meet & Greet’ early to tell everyone not to offer Tommy any drugs. Rock n’ Roll!
Who are your favourite artists?
I could list 100 bands and still not get all of them. Just for kicks, I would say Kansas, Blue Oyster Cult, Cheap Trick, Shooting Star, AC/DC, early Aerosmith, Styx, REO Speedwagon, ZZ Top, Ted Nugent, Lynyrd Skynyrd, the Allman Brothers, early Molly Hatchet, The Doors, Judas Priest, Iron Maiden, Def Leppard, April Wine, Bad Company, Boston, Tesla, Uriah Heep, Van Halen with David Lee Roth, Sammy Hagar solo, Steve Miller Band, Aerosmith and, of course, Led Zeppelin and Pink Floyd… See what I mean? I could go on forever. I also love blues rock guys like Stevie Ray Vaughan, Robin Trower and Buddy Guy.
Which rock magazines do you read?
I love Classic Rock in the UK. Best rock magazine around. I read that and Guitar World.
Are there any other websites you’re a fan of?
My schedule does not allow a lot of time to surf the net but I love Metal Sludge and MelodicRock.com.
What are some of the best gigs you’ve been to whilst Classic Rock Revisited has been up and running?
Moondance Jam in Minnesota every year is a highlight. A long weekend with classic rock bands one after the other. Rock Honours are always awesome. The Who was amazing. The first year was cool as well as they had Kiss, Priest, Def Lep and Queen + Paul Rodgers.
What are your future ambitions for the site?
My wife just did a wonderful site redesign. It looks awesome. I want the site to continue to grow and to continue to reach more and more people. I am focusing on writing projects as well. Please visit the site and check out our book, Classic Rock Revisited From The Vault: Series 1: Stadium Rock. It has 12 amazing interviews from our first ten years. The link to read reviews, check out the press release and buy the book is http://www.classicrockrevisited.com/book.htm . My main goal is to do music journalism full time. If any big money sponsors read this then contact me through the site and let’s talk. Imagine what I could do if I could do this 50 hours a week. It would be amazing!
Interview by Neil Daniels 2008
