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RAR TUNE OF THE WEEK:

Three New Tunes This Edition - This week's RAR original is really three including: "Gates" - a commentary on race relations in the U.S. built around last year's Henry Louis Gates police incident; "Laughing" (Nuke 'em From Orbit) - a meditation on an anticipated exchange at the pearly gates; and "Early Beatles" - an up tempo pop tip of the hat to the spirit of the Fab Four, complete with tributes to Beatles-specific arrangement devices.

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RAR reviews LPs from Michael ONeill (Ain't Leavin' Your Love), Sarah Stanley (Tuesday Girl), Hilary York (In The Dark), Tom Corwin and Tim Hockenberry (Mostly Dylan), The Boxmasters (Modbilly), Mad Buffalo (Wilderness), and others. Also read reviews from RARWRITER contributors Doug Strobel and Diana Olson.

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J. Vermeer -  "The Artist In His Studio"

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RARWRITER.com Annual "State of the Union" Report 2008-2009.

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CONTRIBUTOR PROSPECTUS

RARWRITER.com is exploding with new readers, new artist profiles, and new business opportunities. Would you like to become involved as an editorial contributor? If you are a great writer or photographer with particular knowledge of your creative community, and you are looking for publishing credits, contact us at Rick@RARWRITER.com for a copy of the RARWRITER Contributor Prospectus to learn what involvement can mean for you.-RAR

From the Basement to the Coliseum

The musical journey
of legendary drummer

Bill Lordan

By Bill Lordan

with Diana Olson

Copyright © Bill Lordan and Diana Olson 2009 All Rights Reserved

May not be reproduced without the written consent of the authors

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  Excerpt from

Chapter 5 – The Robin Trower Decade

After a year and half or so with Sly and the Family Stone, my friend Donny Crissey, who worked at Studio Instrument Rentals called me and said that Robin Trower was looking for a drummer.  Robin had been in Procol Harum and played a bluesy Jimi Hendrix style guitar. I called the Hotel Continental Hyatt House on Sunset and asked for Robin Trower.  Surprisingly, I got him on the phone and he said, “come on down.”  I played, got the job and moved to England in September 1974.

Robin had said this about Bill Lordan: “Bill’s a great drummer, y’know. He’s got to be one of the best drummers there are. I mean, you can’t play with someone like that and not have it change you. These are our first gigs we’ve played with Bill, and y’know, the first night was classic! We went on and he was right for us. He knew he was right for us before we did. He’d been into us from the time the first album came out and he’s been trying to get hold of me ever since, ‘cause he knew he was The Drummer. He phoned me up and said, ‘I’m the guy you want. Don’t listen to anybody else.’ And he was right. He was absolutely perfect. See, he’s been into it right from the first album. Bill, on drums, has added so much, a completely new dimension.”

My first gig with Robin was in Rochester New York in January 1974 with Black Oak Arkansas.  We went on stage to do our first set.  I had my cassette tape recorder on behind the drums and we were not quite sure if it went as good as we hoped it would.  When we got back to the hotel and Robin came to my room and heard the tape from that night, he was elated.  It was better than he even thought it was.   After that first tour we went back to Los Angeles to start recording “For Earth Below”.   The album went to number five on the billboard charts and we started to headline shows.

 MP3 Samples from Bill Lordan’s Discography:

·         “Simple Life” from the "Best of BLX"

·         “Drum Solo/Midnight” from the "Best of BLX"

·         “Chamber of My Heart” from the "Best of BLX", winner of 2004 LA Music Awards

·         “Dance to the Music” from the “Best of BLX”, Sly and the Family Stone from Soul Train, 1974

·         “Little Bit of Sympathy” from the “Best of BLX”, Robin Trower live

CLICK HERE TO RETURN TO THE ARTIST INDEX PAGE

©Rick Alan Rice (RAR), October, 2009