The ‘America’s Gift’ book review in top UK music magazine ‘Blues In Britain’ is found between books on Steve Marriott and Mike Bloomfield. The ‘America’s Gift’ review, on page 39, is between ‘All Or Nothing: The Authorised Story of Steve Marriott’ by Simon Spence and ‘Guitar King: Michael Bloomfield’s Life In The Blues’ by David…

Rock ‘n’ Roll Myths six and seven. “It’s very hard to tell what made me first decide to play the guitar. ‘Rock Around the Clock’ by Bill Haley came out when I was ten, and that probably had something to do with it.” David Gilmour, Pink Floyd. In 1955, Bill Haley and His Comets unlocked the pop…

Let’s start with July 9th 1955. Rock ‘n’ roll’s Ground Zero.  “The first time I really ever felt a tingle up my spine was when I saw Bill Haley and the Comets on the telly. ” Paul McCartney. Things are rarely as they first seem in the history of rock and roll. Dismissed as a passing fad…

How would you like to hire Pink Floyd for just £250 (US$334.47) a night? Back in 1969, in the UK, such a thing was possible. As you can see from this vintage price-list, Joe Cocker, the Moody Blues and Jethro Tull cost you £350 ($468) nightly; and Ten Years After, even less. Rory Gallagher’s band…

I’ve always had a soft spot for hard rock band AC/DC since seeing one of their early gigs in Melbourne, Australia, in 1974. An unknown AC/DC were supporting a well-known Lou Reed, who we’d paid handsomely to see, but found uninspired and disappointing. AC/DC weren’t as tight as they’d later become but, needless to say,…