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JOAN JETT saves the day...
from: newsobserver.com
by David Menconi
Between Tropical Storm Alberto flooding my basement and the Hurricanes losing, Wednesday was not a day I'm going to remember fondly. Except for one thing: I got to talk to JOAN JETT, someone I've long admired. Jett is sort of like the Rod Brind'Amour of rock stars -- hard-working, reliable, no-nonsense, well-meaning and easy to like. She even covers a Replacements song on her new album; how can you not root for her?
The one and only time I've ever seen Jett play live was at South By Southwest two years ago, and she still rocked it like it was 1982. Between "I Love Rock 'N Roll," "Bad Reputation" and her crushing cover of the old Tommy James hit "Crimson and Clover," she slayed the crowd of jaded music-biz hipsters (who thought they were too cool for old-school rock & roll, but waved collective fists and yelled anyway). I was exhausted just watching her. And she still sounds and looks sensational in her latest video, for "A.C.D.C." -- http://kandok.fatcow.com/jobs/13/1/acdc.mov
"I never really stopped doing this," Jett said when asked how she seems to have made the last quarter-century stand still. "You know when you’re not having 'hits' anymore, people just figure you're not doing it anymore. But we were always on the road through the '80s, through the '90s, through the 2000s. It’s not like we've ever taken a big break, and playing on the road is a continuous workout I’ve never given up. I stay extra-active. I’ve also been a vegetarian for 15 years and I don’t smoke or drink."
So there you have it, kids, helpful advice on better living through rocking well -- use it wisely. Jett will be in Raleigh with the Vans Warped Tour on June 27; and you can read more about her in the June 23 What's Up.
I also spoke to one of Jett's former bandmates, Eric "Roscoe" Ambel, the first lead guitarist in her backup band the BLACKHEARTS way back when and another all-around solid citizen. We talked about him answering Jett's ad to audition ("JOAN JETT is looking for three good men"), and also about her signature chart-topping hit, "I Love Rock 'N Roll." Steve Jones and Paul Cook from the Sex Pistols brought that song to Jett's attention after hearing it on British television; and Ambel said he wasn't the least bit surprised when it hit #1 and became the biggest hit single of 1982.
"We went around playing that song for more than a year," Ambel recounted. "And every night, playing in these places where nobody knew who we were, we played that song and we won. You know, it’s like the end of the wedding where everybody’s drunk enough, the band turns into the Beatles and plays the right song — we won with that song every single time."
Nowadays, Ambel's main gig is playing guitar in Steve Earle's band. He also plays with the roots-rock supergroup the Yayhoos, who are bound for a gig at the Pour House in Raleigh on Aug. 22.
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