Coffee Is So Glam, or Heavy Metal Pitchmen

Ok, I have about a zillion other things to write about, but I'll be darned if I didn't come across a thread on Metal Sludge last night about Paul Stanley. Turns out Mr. Kiss sang a Folgers ad back in the 1970s. I never knew this and I always love learning random facts about my favorite bands/musicians. (If you're not from America, Folgers is a brand of coffee).

If you're from America, you probably remember those cheesy 80s Taster's Choice commercials with the fake soap operas revolving around coffee (seriously, I'm not making this up). Well, Paul Stanley singing for Folgers trumps Taster's Choice any old day.

The ads don't stop with Paul and the coffee. Aerosmith did an advertisement for the Gap about a decade ago. When I saw it the first time, I wept a little - and not out of joy. Here's the clip:

Of course, we all know Alice Cooper has become a de facto pitch man for everything golf. Last night I actually stumbled across an advertisement featuring Alice that I've never seen before (probably because it only airs during golf, and I don't watch that!)

And finally, what makes more sense than having a Metal star...pimp a Metal magazine? A lifetime ago, Slash and Axl Rose joined forces to drum up business for RIP Magazine. I'm pretty sure Slash was either 1) drunk or 2) high or 3) both during the filming of this spot. No matter - the classic Glam pictures are enough for you to push play and watch the clip. Note: operators are not standing by, so do not call!

Does your favorite Glam musician pitch for a certain product? Post the link!

Saints of Los Angeles Tour...

Just a reminder that Motley Crue kick off the Saints of Los Angeles tour  tonight in San Diego. With them are Hinder, Theory of a Deadman and The Last Vegas. I post this reminder in case you want to search for some live video clips in about 24 hours. I'll be seeing this tour in two weeks with Heather in Illinois. I'll post a review and photos after the show.

Here are all the tour dates in case you don't have your tickets yet:

2/2/09 - San Diego, CA - Cox Arena
2/4/09 - Reno, NV - Reno Events Center
2/6/09 - Las Vegas, NV - The Joint at Hard Rock Hotel
2/7/09 - Las Vegas, NV - The Joint at Hard Rock Hotel
2/10/09 - Omaha, NE - Quest Center
2/11/09 - Moline, IL - iWireless Center
2/13/09 - Grand Rapids, MI - Van Andel Arena
2/14/09 - Madison, WI - Alliant Energy Center
2/15/09 - Rockford, IL - MetroCentre
2/17/09 - Des Moines, IA - Wells Fargo Arena
2/18/09 - St. Paul, MN - Xcel Energy Center
2/19/09 - Green Bay, WI - Resch Center
2/21/09 - Nashville, TN - Sommet Center
2/22/09 - Birmingham, AL - BJCC Arena
2/25/09 - Greenville, SC - BI-LO Center
2/27/09 - Lafayette, LA - Cajun Dome
2/28/09 - New Orleans, LA - New Orleans Arena
3/3/09 - Miami, FL - Hard Rock Casino
3/4/09 - Orlando, FL - UCF Arena
3/6/09 - Atlantic City, NJ - Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa
3/7/09 - Erie, PA - Erie Civic Center
3/8/09 - Hershey, PA - Giant Center
3/10/09 - Ottawa, ON - Scotiabank Place
3/11/09 - Hamilton, ON - Copps Coliseum
3/13/09 - Uncasville, CT - Mohegan Sun Arena
3/14/09 - Baltimore, MD - 1st Mariner Arena
3/16/09 - New York, NY - Madison Square Garden
3/17/09 - Manchester, NH - Verizon Wireless Arena
3/18/09 - Portland, ME - Cumberland County Civic Center

Happy Birthday, Valentine!

People, today is Valentine's birthday. You can wish him well here. I mean, he is our resident Glam singer. Ladies, feel free to share your eye liner. He wears it. Seriously.

In the meantime, listen to some of his songs here or here. I'm not sure of Valentine's age, but it doesn't really matter. To me, he'll always be a 28 year old blond guy with stacked hair in black leather pants. Seriously.

Here are some "back in the day" videos of Tonight You Rock:

Nothing To Do With Glam, But...

My Glam, I was watching the Super Bowl last night and about fell off my chair when I saw this commercial by CareerBuilder.com - I mean, it's possibly the best television ad I've ever seen.

I wanted to post the ad here in case you didn't watch the game.

Dumbest Video Concept - Ever?

So I'm watching Metal Mania and the video for "Hungry" by Lita Ford pops up. Now, I like Lita well enough. I give her considerable importance in rock history because she was a member of The Runaways and later held her own among the boy's club that is Glam Metal. All that aside, I'd forgotten the horribly stupid video concept for "Hungry." One minute it's Alice in Wonderland...the next, it's Lita, swirling in water and looking like a porn star. Actually, the more I think of it, Cinemax probably plays the "Hungry" video in between the stock pile of soft-core movies. Ick. If you have no idea what I'm talking about, click to watch the video below.

Don't agree with my assessment that "Hungry" has the dumbest video concept ever? Make your own selection known. I dare you.

Like an Obscure Skid Row...

Ok, so Skid Row got massively famous. Across the border and to the north was Sven Gali, often compared to Skid Row. The band had some great tunes but often fell into the "ripped-jean-and-flannel-shirt-but Glam-band" conundrum. After all, it was the dawn of the 90s and flannel was hot - you know, literally and figuratively. So, what's a good Glam band to do but keep the locks long and don some red plaid.

Sven Gali originally formed in 1987 but didn't release their debut until five years later. The good thing about Sven Gali is that they definitely have a hard edge - and are great if you're in a bad mood or just want to drive your car really fast. Also, there's a lot of live clips of them on YouTube so you can  really get  a sense of what the band is all about.

Who were Sven Gali? David Wanless sang and Dee Cernile and Andy Frank played guitar. Gregg Gerson (and later Mike Ferguson) played drums and Shawn Mahar played bass. The band's biggest "hit" is "Love Don't Live Here Anymore" but I much prefer the fast songs. Leave the ballads to Sebastian Bach-era Skid Row I say.

Remember those flannel shirts I mentioned? Yeah, Sven Gali tried to go grunge and - shock - it didn't work. Who knew that a Glam band would suck at grunge?

Anyway, here's the tracklisting for that self-titled debut:

01. Under The Influence
02. Tie Dyed Skies
03. Sweet Little Gypsy
04. In My Garden
05. Freakz
06. Love Don't Live Anymore
07. Stiff Competition
08. Real Thing
09. Whisper In The Rain
10. 25 Hours A Day
11. Here Today Gone Tomorrow
12. Disgusteen

And now the obligatory video clips:

"Here Today, Gone Tomorrow (live)"

"Love Don't Live Here Anymore"

"What You Give"

Meanwhile, Toiling in Obscurity...

Obscure week keeps right on rolling this Friday with McQueen Street.

Now, McQueen Street were an early 90s Glam band. They formed in Alabama and even got the help of guitar god Steve Stevens when it was time to produce their self-titled debut.(Steve also played on a track).

Like a lot of early 90s Glam bands, McQueen Street were signed to SBK/EMI. The band featured Derek Welsh (vocals), Richard Hatcher (bass), Michael Powers (guitars) and Chris Welsh (drums).

The self-titled debut featured these songs:

01.When I'm in the Mood
02.Woman in Love
03.Time
04.Money
05.Stick It
06.My Religion
07.Mexico
08.In Heaven
09.Two Worlds
10.Only the Wind

Derek Welsh has a different band these days called Rat Race. He's also a writer. I think McQueen Street reunited for a few shows a couple years back. As far as I know the band is not together right now.

Here's the video for "My Religion"

Here's a hint: there are a couple copies of McQueen Street's debut for sale on eBay. Go have a look if you don't own a copy of this rockin' album.