Brian Wheat, 'Son of a Milkman: My Crazy Life With Tesla' - Book Review

Book Review: Son of a Milkman: My Crazy Life With Tesla by Brian Wheat (Post Hill Press, 2020).

I bought Brian Wheat’s autobiography back when it came out at the end of 2020 and then promptly forgot about it. This review is for the Kindle edition and that also explains why I forgot the book. The file got mixed in with so many other titles I have in waiting – and it just kept getting push back. I rectified this oversight the other day and sat down to read the book. At 224 pages, it isn’t a long read and the content is enjoyable and fast to digest. My biggest complaint with Milkman is that it could use a little more editing. Right up front, Wheat says he writes like he talks and that is in a very free-flowing fashion. This seems true as Wheat repeats himself a few times throughout the book. Tighter editing would have fixed that problem.

The title comes from Wheat’s upbringing – he is the illegitimate son of a milkman. The milkman got Wheat’s mom pregnant then took off. He had a bit of a chaotic childhood and his family was poor – his mom was on assistance a lot trying to raise several kids alone. It seems he’s carried his childhood trauma with him his entire life.

Wheat spends a lot of time talking about his obsession for the Beatles, how he eventually became a musician and the formation of Tesla. The opinions in this book are unfiltered: Wheat says what he wants about who he wants and he admits he can be taken as unfriendly or gruff. Some of that personality came from the business side of managing Tesla for so long now and seemingly being the only one to pay attention to the numbers and the money the band was (or wasn’t) making at any given time.

I learned just how close the members of Def Leppard and Tesla are and how much the Leps have helped Tesla along the way. I also learned that singer Jeff Keith was a total meth-head. I knew he was an addict and going off the rails before getting clean but I had no idea his drug of choice was meth. I also learned a lot about Wheat’s anxiety, depression and autoimmune disorders. Actually, Wheat’s health battles are a large theme through the book, starting with his first bout with ulcerative colitis and then eventually an extra diagnosis of Chron’s disease. These days, Wheat knows he has to watch his stress and diet or he will have flareups that will land him in the hospital. This is also woven into his weight battle – how he first gained weight working at McDonald’s – to losing tons of weight every time he has a flare-up to gaining weight from steroids to cure the flares. I know that is a very relatable experience for lots of people.

There are not a whole lot of backstage road stories or anything like that – this is truly a tale of Brian’s life and Tesla just happens to be a big part of it. He also talks about his passion for Victorian homes, his first marriage to singer Sandi Sarya, their divorce and how he met his second wife Monique. Plus there are special stories about his love and friendship with Jimmy Page.

The biggest takeaway from Milkman for me? Just how little money each guy from Tesla was earning at the height of their popularity. The amount is small in comparison to what is pissed away on drugs and women and whatever else. Also the original guys fought nonstop and were just about unworkable in the studio. It's amazing some of their records saw the light of day. 

Tesla Announces 2024 Tour Dates

Tesla just announced the 2024 "Keepin' It Real" tour. There are more shows to be added, too. I saw Tesla live last summer and I would see them again if they come near me, too. So far, no southern Ohio dates - but here's hoping!

Dave Rude Announces New Solo Record

Dave Rude is best known as a guitarist for Tesla - but he's also a solo artist. He has a new album coming out November 17 and it is called Through The Fire. It's available for pre-order now. Yes, there's a limited edition vinyl option too. Of course!

Tesla, 'S.O.S. (Too Bad)' - New Video

Happy football Sunday! Tesla covered Aerosmith on their most recent album Full Throttle Live. The band just released a video of the cover of "S.O.S. (Too Bad)" and it's really great! Also, I want that Aerosmith shirt that Tesla frontman Jeff Keith is rocking. 😍😍

"S.O.S. (Too Bad)" is on the Aerosmith album Get Your Wings. It's a hardcore Aero fan favorite for a reason - it's amazing live!

Tesla and Nelson Live Review - Kettering, Ohio

Last night Eric and I saw Tesla at Fraze Pavilion in Kettering, Ohio. Nelson provided support. The weather was perfect for August in Ohio. It was 80 degrees and no humidity – unheard of for deep summer around my parts.

Here’s the rub though: I have chronic ear infections and by lunchtime yesterday, I had developed a swollen node in my neck so big it was visible through my skin. My right ear was full of fluid and the left ear was getting bad too. I’ve never been to a rock show with such a bad infection and I wasn’t sure how using ear plugs was going to go. On top of it, Eric and I were in the front row. Like, right on the rail front row.

So I took a nap in the afternoon, swallowed some Aleve and copious amounts of water and tried to tell myself I didn’t feel exhausted. The good news is that I was able to wear ear plugs just fine during Tesla without added pain. I didn’t need them at all for Nelson.

Nelson’s set had a few technical issues. Mainly with Gunnar’s guitar and cable – they didn’t work. He was visibly annoyed through the show because of the issue. Techs kept working on it and eventually got his guitar to produce sound. At one point, the Nelson twins sang an acapella song to fill time for the techs to keep on working. At any rate, the show was incredible. Guitarist Neil Zaza is amazing and I could watch him perform for hours. He was literally right in front of me, so it was cool to see his hands move around the fret board. The Nelson brothers sounded great and in harmony as ever. It has been years since I saw them live and I really enjoyed their set and yes, “After The Rain” was the closer and a highlight.

Tesla was much louder than Nelson, which isn’t surprising. They opened with “Lady Luck” and moved quickly to my favorite “Modern Day Cowboy.” Now being my favorite Tesla song, I was obviously pumped to hear it so early in the set, especially since I was worried I would have to leave early because of my ear issues.  Here’s the annoying part: we are front row and the seats and temporary rail are like six inches apart. There is barely room to scoot by so imagine the frustration of the entire row when a couple has to get security to kick squatters out of their rightful seats! For half of “Cowboy” I couldn’t see the stage because there were so many people piled up. Eric had to completely sit down even. It took the whole song to get the ticket mess for the folks down the aisle to get sat correctly and people around me were going nuts with anger. The show moved along and I was glad Dave Rude was right in front of me since he is my favorite Tesla member and he always makes weird faces when he plays guitar.

Jeff Keith is as thin as ever and he strutted from one side of the stage to the other, singing and sweating, working through “Heaven’s Trail,” “Love Me,” “Edison’s Medicine” and even “Time To Rock” from the band’s new live album.

People obviously went nuts for “Love Song” and “Little Suzi” and “Signs” was the final song which featured the Nelson brothers on backing vocals too. I’m not sure, but I think Matthew Nelson was live streaming the performance, so maybe it will be (or was) on their socials. The show started at 9:30 p.m. and ended right at 11:00 p.m. so it was a tight set of around 17 songs or so – and there wasn’t much b.s. or stage banter. People paid to see music and that is what they got.

The highlight for me was seeing photos of the band projected on the big screen from back in the early 80s to now set to “What You Give.” It was fun seeing the old news clips and photos from Metal Edge.

Oh and here’s something odd: the crowd was so heavily male, it wasn’t even close. Like, there was no line at the women’s room but men had to wait and their restroom line wrapped around the building. That is not my typical experience at 80s metal shows! 

Tesla Tonight!

I feel like I bought the tickets a lifetime ago for the show - and tonight I am seeing Tesla not too far from my house. The show is at Fraze Pavilion, so a smaller shed. I have front row seats so it should be a good time. Nelson will open as a replacement for Steelheart. I will take copious mental notes and report back as always. More later!

I Guess I'm Seeing Tesla And Steelheart This Summer!

This was a nice concert announcement surprise this morning: Tesla and Steelheart will play Fraze Pavilion, a smallish venue near my community. I am gathering a decent amount of concerts for the summer - all intimate venues or outdoor club shows with average-to-low ticket prices.

Today's announcement means that Tesla is slowly adding dates to their tour, so check their website or socials frequently. A show might be coming near you, too.