Rock Star personalities!!!

[fogman]

The Jeff Beck thread made me think of the idea of this one.
How many of you had the opportunity to meet someone famous (preferably in the music business)? How was there persona? Where they cool? Lame? Losers? Awesome down to earth dudes???

I didn't get to go to the open house, but I can tell that the EBMM artists are totally down to earth nice guys! (even Lucious! )

My only brush with musicaly fame was meeting Kim Mitchel.
All I have to say is, for someone who isn't that "big", what an Arse!!!

 

[koogie2k]

I have met quite a few over the years. So, I will say this....

Yngwie - Personality needs major overhaul.....(story is not good between me and him)

Steve Morse - Super cool dude that is a brilliant musician

John Petrucci - quiet, down to earth dude.

Dave Larue - really laid back, cool cat

Vinnie Moore - Super cool and really excited to meet you and sign stuff for you

Luke - my favorite of them all. He absolutely is one of the fellas and will have a brew with you and tell you some great road stories. Meeting him is like meeting a long lost family member. He holds nothing back and is surely anit-rock star. He is very humble and just plain cool to hang with. I had a great time hanging out with him at the Open House talking about life and our kids. Dude is super cool and funny as can be.

Satch - just got an autograph, he had no time to chat

Marilyn Manson - weird fella, but kinda cool to talk to. I'm not into his type of stuff, but he is not an idiot. Might look like one, but he does make good conversation.

Kerry King - Cool dude, likes to chat if he can. I got to talk with him for about 10 minutes.

Quorthon (Bathory) - I know his real name as he was a friend of mine. I met him many many years ago when he was kinda starting out. He was a huge influence in Black Metal and the movement. He released some great albums once he figured out he could actually sing. He kept in contact with me almost on a weekly basis. Sadly, and this really pains me, he passed away due to a heart condition not diagnosed. He was truly a friend and was a wonderful person.

Ace Frehley (after KISS days) - meeting him did not turn out to be as cool as I thought it would be. Not his fault, he was running late and had to get going and it kind of irritated him. I did get a siggy by him on the way out the door though.

I have met other celebrities, but that is it musically that I can think of and remember.
I have met some interesting people over the years. The best one was meeting Mario Lemiuex (sp?) on an airplane. We talked hockey and life for 5 hours and he was just a really nice guy. Glad to see him skating still.

 

[lock-ny]

I have met a bunch, but the coolest was dave navarro and the biggest jerk was scott ian of anthrax, what an ass that guy was, maybe he was just having a bad day -

 

[tommyindelaware]

this thread lends it's self to flaming too easily.


plus ....it's really not realisically a good idea to size a person up on one brief encounter.
my 2 cents......

 

[shamus63]

Randy Rhodes (June '81; San Diego) ~ one of the most down-to-earth people (not just 'rock star') that I've had the cool opportunity to meet! Just four of us waiting for our rides, and Randy comes out and hangs with us for about ten minutes until his ride shows up. Very cool!

Michael Anthony ~ having grown up in the Pasadena area myself, my band and two of his brother's bands were all friends.

During Van Halen breaks, Michael would come hang with our bands either in Hollywood at the Whiskey/Roxy, or at the rehearsal studio in La Puente...usually dragging a couple of 12'rs with him! Yeah, a fun hang!

Backstage at Robert Plant (LA Forum; private bar area; June or July '85) ~ who's who was back there: Robert and band, Rod Stewart, Eric Carr, Ted Nugent, Chris Squire/Trevor Rabin/Tony Kaye of Yes, Dale Bozio, Vivian Campbell and Jimmy Bain (don't remember Dio being there), and somebody who to this day I'll swear was Warren DeMartini (RATT)...I was too chickensh*t to approach any of them! What a blown opportunity!

Eddie Van Halen at a local music shop in '79...just me and the guy running the guitar dept (Gary), I screwing around with a Strat, and Eddie walks in...says 'hi' to Gary, then asks if he can check out the Strat...

He starts right in with Eruption, and 'noodles' some other stuff...I said 'not bad'...not having recognized who he was. He got a chuckle out of that!

David Lee Roth (May '84; LA Forum) ~ passed him walking the other direction leading into the underground parking at The Forum...all smiles, says 'Hey!' as I wave to him.

Peter Criss ~ he was touring around '85-86 with a band called Balls of Fire. Some of my old band members were in the opening band, and I got to meet him...pretty cool dude.

Leonard Haze (Y&T drums) ~ did a few gigs and jam nights with him. Hung out at his house in the East Bay one day to go over some cover songs for an upcoming gig. He told me stories of life on the road with Y&T opening for Ozzy and hanging with Alex Van Halen that had me rolling in tears! Another cool hang!

Gene, Paul, Bruce, and Eric Singer (San Diego '93) ~ doing a meet-and-greet at the Tower Records on El Cajon Blvd. by SDSU.

Even with jet-lag and general fatigue, they were all gracious and genuinely friendly!

No matter what anybody says about their music or persona, they really do connect with the fans!

Most of the members of Fishbone; Angelo, 'Dirty Walt', and John Bigham (met him solo'd) were way cool! Norwood and Fish were pretty cool, as well.

Greg Khin (a couple of times; hella nice guy and funny!), all the members of Cheap Trick (also very approachable; even the elusive Bun E.). Robin is a class act...he invited my wife and I back to the catering area to chill and gab for about ten minutes...nobody else around. Very humble guy.

David Carradine (allright, not a 'rock star') ~ backstage at Tsunami Relief Feb. '05 in Fremont, CA ~ a pretty cool hang, and loves a good drink!

I can't think of anyone else right now, but I'm tired and ready for bed.

 

[Beth]

Everyone I've met have all been really nice, down-to-earth people. The only ones that haven't been too nice to me was when I was a slobbering, starstuck a$$wipe wanting their autograph.

Could you imagine dealing with j*erkoffs like me all day in that respect?

 

[Colin]

this thread lends it's self to flaming too easily.


plus ....it's really not realisically a good idea to size a person up on one brief encounter.
my 2 cents......

Maybe we should just talk about the positive encounters and refrain from slaggin on these guys?

I have met Steve Morse several times and each time he was very fan orientated. Interestingly the last time we spoke (at a DP concert) I asked him if would ever consider putting a quilt top on his guitars? His reply was "No, I like the way poplar keeps the sound neutral"
I also had the chance to drive Eric Johnson around town and at lunch I asked him if he would ever do a signature model? His reply was "No, I prefer older guitars"

I'm glad they changed their minds (not that I would buy a EJ strat)
Colin

 

[Katana6506]

I've not yet met a single "personality," but I'd love to meet Steve Vai at some point.

 

[B2D]

Marty Freidman - Seemed kind of like he was bored with me before I even got there. Maybe he was having a bad day but he was acting like a snob.

Dave Mustaine - Nice dude! He was really tired from driving from San Diego to Santa Barbara when i met him but he still took the time for a few friendly words.

George Lynch - Seemed like a shy 17-year old. Not a bad guy, just kinda standoffish. Overall friendly.

Seymour Duncan - The MAN!!! He actually got into a 10-minute conversation about So. Cal and the old 60's surf music scene and such and he told me a buncha cool short stories. Couldn't have been nicer. Awesome dude!

Reggie Arvizu - a.k.a. Fieldy from Korn. I dont like Korn at all but he wandered into the GC i was working at the time and bought some stuff. I said hey and just asked him how he was, with a grin that acknowledged I knew who he was. He just kinda smiled and responded in kind. I think once he figured out I wasn't going to harass him he got a little more relaxed.

Viv Campbell, Joe Elliot, and Phil Collen - The Def Lep boys are really mellow, affable dudes. They all like to talk gear, too. Even joe!

Sherri, Stacy, Chauntelle, Wes, and Garron from Eisley - met them after their recent show at the Fonda in LA. Super nice and they really go out of their way to make you feel appreciated.

 

[Mick]

Everyone I've met have all been really nice, down-to-earth people. The only ones that haven't been too nice to me was when I was a slobbering, starstuck a$$wipe wanting their autograph.

Could you imagine dealing with j*erkoffs like me all day in that respect?

Want a pick with my autograph on it, pleeease

 

[fsmith]

Having worked security for a few years in my younger days I met most of the bigs acts that came through the Baltimore/DC area.

Most were nice enough, I think they just want to be looked at like any other person out there, don't act like a goof and they'll probably be very cool, if they have time. Most of them were very gracious and would sit around and BS with you throughout the day.

Some of the better ones that I've met and talked to...
Sammy Hagar, Dave Gilmour, ZZ Top, Ted Nugent, Dave Mustaine, Ricky Medlocke, Geddy Lee, Rik Ocasek (odd dude but really cool), Peter Frampton, Steve Wariner, Chris Caffrey, Alex Skolnik and more that I can't think of off the top of my head.

There were a few bummers, and that was probably just due to them having a bad day like everyone else. Backstage at a cold damp hockey arena isn't the best place for everyone to be bright and cheerful.

 

[SteveB]

Hmm..

Met Sammy Hagar when he was touring for his first album with VH. I was in a hotel for a meeting and VH had the entire top floor (and tour buses outside). He was really laid back and cool.

Met all the original members of Queensryche at a signing one time (when Mindcrime came out). They were all very gracious except for Eddie Jackson. Agreed, you can't judge by a single encounter.

Steve Morse & Vinnie Moore - attended clinics held by these guys ages ago. They were great guys and very down-to-earth.

My office used to be in the Westin William Penn hotel in downtown Pittsburgh. Anytime a movie was being shot in Pittsburgh, the stars stayed there. Let me try to recall all the folks I met there:

Bruce Willis - saw him frequently when he was filming "Striking Distance". He was very congenial and tried to keep a low profile.

Jeff Healy Band - I rode the elevator with them once. They were very nice and willing to chat.

Kathleen Turner - couldn't really get to her because she had a huge entourage around her. She was in town doing "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof". I heard that sexy voice, spun around, and there she was in all her glory!

There were MANY more, but I can't think of them at the moment!

 

[Jonny Dubai]

Vai----cool, laid back and tired after a show that i got backstage at.
Sach --- as abouv, but even more laid back
Bettencourt --- met him in Boston when I was between flights. Again nice, cool and laid back.
Kotzen (my fave)--- very queit and a bit hung over/jet lagged
Stevie Salas --- a blast. Unbelievably kind. Gave me a rare cd for free.
Macheinhead --- cool blokes. not my kind of music though.
Martin Taylor (jazz man). Real cool and humble....great book.



That's it for the moment.

Jonny

 

[Jim Warnstedt]

I met Eddie Van Halen in 1998 here in Chicago at the radio station ROCK 103.5. He was very cool and took photos with everyone and signed stuff. There was only a few of us, so that made it nice to be able to hang out with him and Gary Cherone. Also a VERY nice guy. He had big shoes to fill and I think he did a great job! I also met the whole band Tantric and they were all very cool. I met Tommy Lee last year and he was very cool as well. Laid back and easy to talk to. I also met Chris Farley a few days before he passed away at the Hancock building. He was getting out of his limo and was heading inside. He was just as you would expect him to be. Very funny and very nice. I have been lucky to meet a few stars and haven't been disappointed yet. You still have to give them some slack though, because everyone is entitled to a bad day now and then.

 

[beej]

Sat next to Geddy Lee once at a basketball game. One cool dude.

+1 on Luke. What a great guy.

 

[fogman]

Ha! Ha!
I just remembered something else.
I was in Montreal a few years back for the Formula One Race weekend. At night we'd walk around the city because there were festivities all over. Well we walk in front of this hotel (high end) where a crowd was starting to gather and there were limousines waiting outside to pick people up. Nobody knew who was coming out. We were anticipating F1 drivers! The crowd thickened and I was pressed up against the passenger door on the driver's side of the limo. Finally a group comes out of the hotel escorted with security. There was no crowd cheering. It was dead silent. They get into the limo and leave. Everyone looked around puzzled saying who was that? After about 20 minutes of disappointment, we realized it was Sheryl Crow!
I could have touched her but nobody knew who she was!!!! I think she knew that and was probably a little insulted.

 

[LDM]

Edward Van Halen in a shopping mall supermarket back in 78 or 79. He was/is my original guitar hero, so needless to say I was starstruck and almost passed out from the shock of seeing him. Nice guy, seemed shorter than I thought he would be. Quiet and to the point. Brother Alex was in the grocery checkout buying chips and things. DLR was also there but was walking through the mall in the leopard skin spandex with about 50 girls following him around. Making a spectacle of himself.

 

[Spudmurphy]

Pino Palladino - turned him down at an audition about 25 years ago when he changed over from 6 strings to 4. Saw him a couple of years ago and had a good laugh over that.

Dave Edmunds - met after the recoirding of a TV prog. Sat down around a table and had a great chat with him about all the local Welsh musos.

Burke Shelley (Budgie Bass player) - I see too much of him !!! and I'm fed up of beating him at pool all the time.

John Sloman Uraia Heep - an old friend of many many years ago. Man could he sing (and act) like Robert Plant.

Little Feat 2005 talked to all the band and reminisced about the Lowell era when they played Swansea in '76.

Great guys - all of them!!

 

[Hookpunch]

Edward Van Halen in a shopping mall supermarket back in 78 or 79. He was/is my original guitar hero, so needless to say I was starstruck and almost passed out from the shock of seeing him. Nice guy, seemed shorter than I thought he would be. Quiet and to the point. Brother Alex was in the grocery checkout buying chips and things. DLR was also there but was walking through the mall in the leopard skin spandex with about 50 girls following him around. Making a spectacle of himself.

HAHAHAHAHAHA. Sounds like the template for the next 30 years. The VH1 awards disaster comes to mind.

 

[LDM]

HAHAHAHAHAHA. Sounds like the template for the next 30 years. The VH1 awards disaster comes to mind.

It was a contrast. Edward standing around quietly at a grocery store magazine rack, and Dave preening like a peacock drawing as much attention as he could. No sign of Michael Anthony. They had a few tour busses and trucks out in the lot and most of the crew were in the booze store stocking up.
Although Dave was hard to stomach, when I look back on it, he was the perfect frontman for the band.
Edward was a nice guy and seemed humble.