Sparks talks Gratuitous Sax and Senseless Violins NICK KREWEN Hamilton Spectator March 30, 1995 Credited as the inspiration for British electronic dance pop combos Depeche Mode, Erasure and Pet Shop Boys, Sparks is a modern music anomaly: a California duo that is revered in Europe, but ignored in their own backyard. With the release tomorrow of their 16 th album, Gratuitous Sax And Senseless Violins, Sparks linchpins Ron and…
PUBLISHED IN THE HAMILTON SPECTATOR BY NICK KREWEN If you want a record deal, try your local hairdresser. It worked for TLC, the hot Atlanta baby faced pop trio whose month-long reign at #1 on Billboard’s Hot 100 with the song “Creep” ended last week. Four years ago, Tionne “T-Boz” Watkins was a struggling singer looking for the right connection. When she met Lisa “Left-Eye” Lopes during…
BY NICK KREWEN Hamilton Spectator January 26, 1995 First there was Izzy Stradlin’s Ju Ju Hounds. Then Duff McKagan released his punk ‘n’ roll album, Believe In Me, followed by Gilby Clarke‘s Pawnshop Guitars. Now, add guitarist Saul Hudson — better known to the world as Slash — and drummer Matt Sorum to the list of Guns N’ Roses members past and present who have taken time to pursue…
NICK KREWEN Eric Clapton calls him “by far and without a doubt the best guitar player alive.” Late virtuosos Jimi Hendrix and Stevie Ray Vaughan idolized him, and he used to trade licks with Chicago blues legends Muddy Waters, Howlin’ Wolf and Willie Dixon. Yet it’s the fans that dictate Buddy Guy‘s agenda — even if it means entertaining them in sub-zero degree weather. “I played for people outside last…
Published in the Hamilton Spectator on Thursday, November 3 1994 in advance of a November 5 concert at Hamilton Place TORI IN THE PINK NICK KREWEN Tori Amos has a hard time keeping a secret from anyone these days. “They know everything, these kids,” she is saying from New Jersey, another stop in a grueling 10-month world tour that brings the London-based singer and songwriter to Hamilton…
