It’s pretty clear Joan Jett rules and that is why she comes in at number three on our countdown of the top women in rock.
Jett was a member of The Runaways and launched a successful rock career in the 1980s – both solo and with her band, The Blackhearts. Joan’s probably best known for her mega-hit cover “I Love Rock n’ Roll,” “I Hate Myself for Loving You” and “Bad Reputation.”
Joan not only sings better than you – she can also wail on a guitar. Rolling Stone even put her on their “Top 100 Guitarist of All Time” list. Plus, Joan is a monster song writer.
A couple summers back, Joan Jett and the Blackhearts hit the road with Alice Cooper and Motorhead. I'm sure that was one hell of a tour!
There really isn’t anyone bigger in the music world than Michael Jackson.
People become fascinated with celebrity: bigger than life stars that lead seemingly much better lives than our own. It’s always fun to dream of being rich and famous: owning a private jet, buying fancy clothes, traveling the world. And yet, celebrities lack one thing the rest of us have in abundance: privacy.
Michael Jackson lived his life running from the cameras. He had millions of rabid fans and most would do anything to meet him. Jackson responded to his fame in weird ways to be sure. There was the plastic surgery, the skin issues, the Elephant Man...and the child molestation allegations. Those molestation allegations set to derail Jackson and his career – but really nothing will be able to cancel his legacy when it comes to his place in music history.
At his core, Michael Jackson was all about the music - and the money that came from it. Everything else was all secondary – and tabloid reporters were nearly rabid in their efforts to gain a juicy scoop on Jackson. In all those tabloids reports of Jackson’s eccentricity – his musical talents and all those Grammy Awards were forgotten.
We shouldn’t forget Jackson’s immense talent. In fact, he’s a once in a lifetime talent. A brilliant manipulator or both pop and rock. He was able to mold pop harmonies with rock guitar to create a bridge between the two genres. Metal fans might not point to Jackson as a favorite artist – but most of the musicians I’ve interviewed specifically list him by name as an influence.
As the news of Jackson’s death broke and details started to unfolded, I watched the news like everyone else – and then I went to work, reaching out to musicians and publicists to get their opinion on the matter. Jackson leaves behind an immense catalog of work. He was a pop culture icon, and deservedly so. The self-proclaimed King of Pop was about to embark on a 50 city European tour that sold out in seconds. Not many acts sell out shows these days – let alone in under a minute.
Of course, the days ahead will be most interesting. After the shock is over and news dissipates – the focus will shift to Jackson’s kids and his estate. Clearly, a long legal battle will ensue and the kids will most likely be bandied about in every different direction. That’s the real tragedy here.
Let’s not forget Jackson recorded with some of the musicians we love – especially Steve Stevens and Slash. A couple hours after Jackson’s death, Slash Tweeted “Really sad news about Michael, he was a talent from on high.” See, true music lovers appreciate talent across genres. Thank Glam we have so much music to enjoy.
This whole business with Adam Lambert, Hi Fi Recordings/Wilshire and the album On With the Show is getting way out of hand. I haven’t talked about the Adam “pre album” until now because I largely think the entire situation is crap: a small label trying to cash in on someone’s very hard earned fame.
Now, it’s time to talk, so let’s get all of you up to speed.
Last week or so, John Hecker, CEO of The Music Publishing Company of America announced his label, Hi Fi Recordings, was pleased to “release Adam Lambert’s debut album called On With the Show.”
Adam is signed with RCA/19 Entertainment, thanks to his amazing run on American Idol. His RCA debut is due in the fall.
The first single from On With the Show is called “Want,” which Adam recorded as a session singer. He received a flat payment for that work and didn’t write the song. Of course Adam’s voice is awesome on the track – the guy can sing the phonebook – but it isn’t rock star Adam. The surprise release of this material forced Adam to issue a statement.
Fans are ticked and have banded together, basically boycotting Hecker, Hi Fi/Wilshire and the single “Want.”
Now, things are murkier.
Someone with Hi Fi leaked a memo – written two days ago – to TMZ.com. The memo shows the track final listing and publishing splits for On With the Show. Why was the label *just* finishing the track listing two days ago when Hecker and his cronies were talking about the amazing songs all along? Fans have wanted nothing to do with On With the Show because it’s unclear if Adam would receive royalty payment. Suddenly, the track listing emerges – and the CD will be full of songs written by Adam and his friend Monte Pittman. (Pittman is a former member of Prong and a current guitarist for Madonna). So – this complicates everything. Those songs – “Crawl Through Fire,” “Kiss and Tell,” and “15 Minutes of Fame” (which is most likely the new title of “Pop Goes the Camera”) are big with Adam’s hardcore fans. He’s had those songs on his Myspace for a long time – they were demos he was using to get a record deal.
So it seems Hecker decided “Want” wasn’t selling enough copies via iTunes so they had to rearrange songs to make the album seem more legit and to make Adam sound like a liar. After all, why would Adam release a statement saying he was simply singing songs written by someone else? He’s always been proud of the work he’s done with Pittman in the past, so I see no reason to disavow those songs now. Something here just doesn’t add up. Seems like Hi Fi is trying to cash in. Funny how they didn’t want to release an album of Adam’s songs *before* he was on American Idol.
Who doesn’t love Pat Benatar? Today, Pat comes in at number four on our countdown of the top women in rock.
Pat has won a whole lot of Grammy Awards and sold a ton of units. She’s best known for songs like “Hit Me With Your Best Shot” (played at every wedding reception during cake cutting time), and “Love Is a Battlefield.” Those two songs alone make her a legend.
Perhaps most significant, Pat really held her own during the Glam heyday. While it seemed that rock in the 80s was all men, Pat pushed through the glass ceiling and churned out hit after hit. Her videos played in heavy rotation right alongside Motley Crue.
Sadly for us, Pat hasn’t released any new material in quite some time. I think she could have a hit again if she wanted. Not that she needs the money. Another thing: Pat should totally be on this year’s Rocklahoma roster. She’d make a much better headliner than Stryper or Anthrax.
Pat is doing a small tour this summer. Click for dates.
A countdown of the top women in rock - hosted on a Glam website no less - wouldn't be complete without the inclusion of Lita Ford. Today, Lita comes in fifth on our countdown.
Lita is probably the most recognizable female presence when it comes to Glam: her great looks and rock cred as a former star of the The Runaways sure doesn't hurt. In the 1980s, Lita had some big hits, especially "Kiss Me Deadly" and "Close My Eyes Forever," a duet with Ozzy Osbourne.
Lita was on what seemed like a permanent vacation with her husband and kids until she decided to come out of retirement last summer. Then, bam! Lita was everywhere! She played warm-up gigs in smallish clubs and did big festival shows. She sang and played her guitar and looked gorgeous in the process.
Lita is married to Jim Gillette of Nitro. Apparently Jim has joined Lita on stage for duets and the like. It didn't happen either time I saw Lita last summer, but maybe I'll get to witness one of Jim's crazy high notes in the not-too-distant future.
Bumblefoot (of Guns n' Roses fame), is now playing guitar for Lita this summer. I think this is a crazy pairing, but baby gotta eat, if you know what I mean.
Most recently, Lita's been working on a new album called Wicked Wonderland - which Jim helped write and produce. That album is due in the fall.
“You can believe so much in your own band and what you do – but it’s a whole other level when all of a sudden you’re getting played on the radio and you’re getting this tremendous response live,” says Lzzy Hale of success with her band Halestorm.
Hale lands at number six on our countdown of the top seven women in rock.
If you don’t know Lzzy – or Halestorm yet – you will. Halestorm has been churning out songs for more than a decade – when the band members were literally kids! Now, Lzzy and the rest of her band are all grown up and touring hard behind their major label self-titled debut. As the live clips below clearly prove, Lzzy is one hot mama – truly in control of the crowd, her band and guitar. That triple threat – plus one of the nicest attitudes I’ve ever encountered during an interview - makes Lzzy very deserving of her position on this countdown.
Halestorm don’t sound like your current modern metal band: there’s a ton of 80s Glam influence here, and the band embraces it. The songs are big, the lyrics fun, the hooks infectious.
If you don’t own Halestorm yet, pick up a copy. The album is also available as a digital download on iTunes. You can see Lzzy and the rest of Halestorm this summer on the Stimulate This! tour with Shinedown.
A couple days ago, I asked you to choose the content this week: either a week of freebies or the top seven women in rock. The women won and here we go! The countdown starts with Doro Pesch at number seven.
The German-born Doro Pesch is probably best known for fronting the Metal band Warlock. As a matter of fact, Doro plain holds her own as a singer for a fairly heavy classic band. Doro is also a solo artist - but her most famous song is "All We Are" by Warlock.
A lot of people call Doro Pesch a Metal queen, thanks to her huge voice and beautiful features. Yeah, Doro looks like a supermodel on stage with her blond hair whipping in the wind, all leather and chains. I also get the impression Doro can just plain throw down if necessary. True ass kicker all the way.
Here's a very cool fun fact: To celebrate the 20th anniversary of Wacken Open Air, Doro recorded a special anthem called "We Are the Metalheads." She will perform the song at the fest, too.
Doro even covered Billy Idol's "White Wedding" a few years ago. The cover is just sort of "meh" but she does look hot in the clip. Enjoy, boys!
Saturday, June 27, 2009 at 12:01AM 
It’s pretty clear Joan Jett rules and that is why she comes in at number three on our countdown of the top women in rock. 
