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Jett, Laguna keep rockin' 25 years later
Marin County Fair date for the BLACKHEARTS
from: timesheraldonline.com
by Rich Freedman
In the crazy world of rock n' roll, "loyalty" is often up there with "celibacy," "three-piece suits" and the phrase, "Sure, we'll open for Barry Manilow."
Tell that to KENNY LAGUNA. For 25 years, he's been at JOAN JETT's side as co-writer, manager, keyboardist and co-founder of BLACKHEART RECORDS.
That's a lot of tours, a lot of shows, and a lot of buses. But Laguna, a former member of "Tommy James and the Shondells," wouldn't change the course of history one note.
"All these years, she sings those songs and I love it," Laguna said. "And she's for real. She's very humble, very down-to-earth and always nice to people. Wherever she goes, she signs autographs. She goes to children's charities. She visits wounded soldiers. She's amazing."
This apparent Mother Theresa with tattoos takes her rock show to the Marin County Fair on July 3, a day after a Milwaukee gig and a day before a Phoenix show. That's the way it's been, with this Warped Tour warrior doing a nonstop summer where JOAN JETT AND THE BLACKHEARTS hit 20 shows in June and another 24 in July.
Do a show, get on the bus, drive, do another show. At 46, Jett's no kid. And Laguna watches in awe.
"She's doing all these three chord songs and pulling it off every night and she never gets bored," Laguna said.
It was in the middle of an 11-hour bus ride from Minneapolis to Kansas City when Laguna muscled up enough energy for a half-hour interview. It was 100 degrees. No big deal.
"I never complain about heat," Laguna said. "But it was quite a little ride. The show is the easy part of the day. It's getting there."
Jett just finished her fifth show in five nights and the band was heading to Nashville.
"We're all blessed," Laguna said. "We could be in Arizona. It is a really challenging schedule. It's pretty intense. But Joan is tough as nails."
Laguna said the band can't wait to hit San Rafael and another Bay Area gig, July 8 show in San Francisco at Pier 30 before heading south to Fresno, Ventura and Los Angeles and boomeranging back to Marysville near Sacramento at the Sleeptrain Amphitheatre July 13.
"Northern California to Oregon is breathtaking," Laguna said. "I don't know if people living in California appreciate it."
What started it all, as even the slightest Jett fan knows, is "I Love Rock 'n Roll," which was No. 1 in the country for 16 weeks in 1982.
"I thought it might be a hit and Joan was sure of it," Laguna said.
Jett tried to get her previous band, the all-female "RUNAWAYS," to record "I Love Rock 'n Roll."
"They thought it was a joke," Laguna said. "Now they're probably going to psychiatrists and can only imagine what would have happened."
Though the hit song - "I love rock 'n roll, put another dime in the jukebox, baby" - was a smash, Laguna didn't bank his career on it.
"We didn't want to get too happy," he said. "We had plans to go much further to have a legacy. We worked hard and kept our nose to the ground. We just worked all the time so we could have a future."
After constant rejections by major labels, the hit song vindicated JOAN JETT AND THE BLACKHEARTS, Laguna said.
"Joan was a talented girl who was left for dead by the industry," he said. "She couldn't get a record recorded. Nobody was like her. And people didn't appreciate her impact on the world."
Though Jett may have merely shrugged, the rejection "pissed me off," Laguna said. "Joannie was self-motivated, but I have all these demons. The angrier I get, the more I was motivated. I don't think it mattered that other people rejected her. She had a vision with a certain kind of music and she made it happen."
"I Love Rock 'n Roll" was Jett's only No. 1, but far from only recognized tune. She would have eight more Top 40 songs, including her version of Tommy James' "Crimson and Clover," that rose to No. 7, and "I Hate Myself for Loving You," which made it to No. 8.
Laguna said there's no end in sight for him and Jett and figured that at 175 shows a year for 25 years, he and the princess of punk have done roughly 4,400 shows from the United States to Belfast to Thailand.
"It's thrilling and gratifying, but I don't think it gets easier," Laguna said. "I thank God every day because this is an amazing way to make a living. Sometimes I get tired and grumpy and I look at the band and want to choke them. It's a family that you try and keep together. And Joan is still out there, getting her accolades."
And, finally, respect.
"I'm proud of Joan and she's proud of me," Laguna said. "We're not in competition, which is what I think drives people apart. The ego trips where you want to be the most important one. I think she is amazing every day. If they think I'm just the guy who gets coffee, I'm fine with that."
About the only goal left, Laguna said, is to get Jett & The BLACKHEARTS into the Rock 'n' Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland.
"If she doesn't deserve it," Laguna said, "Who does?"
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