LITTLE CAESAR (the band): Rox Redux

all photos (C) 1989 - 2010 Heather Harris. All Rights reserved.

Their self-description of "Ray Charles meets AC/DC" comes close enough to encapsulate the essence of Little Caesar (the band) (not the Edward G. Robinson classic gangster film) (and certainly not the fast food chain with its different spelling) who boast a dynamic, genuinely soulful singer over hardest, nastiest rock (with the occasional reflective ballad. Hey, ya gotta look back when your band has been rocking off and on for over twenty years.)

Back with a new 2010 release "Redemption" sporting, on some songs, all its original members from the Golden Era of Geffen Metal (their label for their first three releases circa 1990 - 92. Remember their rockin' rearrangement of "Chain Of Fools" all over the radio?) plus some excellent new players, they sound just as superb if not even better.

Their modus operandi includes wild double lead guitars, referential soul/R&B, timber-toppling beats, arena-worthy hard-coreness, five distinct personas interacting with much playfulness onstage, and the cleverest rock lyrics since Randy Newman and Bon Scott. And they're gigging again- don't miss out this time around.

I've enjoyed photographing this great band from 1989 through Right Now. The sole cover on "Redemption" is, for wont of a better lexicon, a Hard Glam cover of "Every Picture Tells A Story," so I offer the following gallery of Little Caesar from 1989 to 2010 on this blog entry in hopes that it displays their unique bad-boy-next-door camaraderie as well as all-out devotion to their unique music.

JAM for RON ASHETON 1.13.10, Roxy, LIVE PHOTOS

all photos (C) 2010 Heather Harris. All Rights Reserved.

Leanna Asheton just did a nice thing for her late uncle, guitarist Ron Asheton who passed away unexpectedly a year ago Jan. 6th, as well as did a highly accomplished, professional thing. As promoter, she commemorated his Stooges' legacy in her tribute to Ron Asheton Jam at the Roxy, Hollywood, Calif., January 13, 2010.

Belying her youth (she's 18) Ms. Asheton ably produced a show that featured performers with connections to the Stooges, both as legendary participants or as edgy young bands on the ascent, with the following lineup of the jamming and groups: Billy Boy On Poison; The Entrance Band; Night Horse (from Leanna and the Stooges' native Michigan); The Living Things, a group of brothers like The Stooges; drummer Scott "Rock Action" Asheton (original and current Stooge) and Leanna's father; Mike Watt (current Stooge); Steve Mackay (original and current Stooge); Scott Thurston (original Iggy and The Stooges Stooge); Stephen Perkins (Jane's Addiction); Chad Smith (drummer, Red Hot Chili Peppers); singer Anna Rose; Derek Stanton (singer/songwriter/guitarist of Ann Arbor MI's fabulous Stooge-esque-but-noise-band power trio Awesome Color); Mike Jtone, singer of Circus Boy (from Ann Arbor MI as well); The Raw Power Rangers (a Stooges circa 1973 tribute band comprised of L.A. punk luminaries); Steve Baise and Don Bolles; and even a random audience member (one Trevor Swenson) pulled onstage to karaoke "I Wanna Be Your Dog." No bottles or cameras were thrown.

Pictured at top: Mike Watt, Scott "Rock Action" Asheton and Scott Thurston, Stooges all, left to right. Current Stooges reunion's Watt had not publicly performed before with Raw Power vintage Stooge Thurston, initially the keyboard player (I took live Stooges photos from that era!) here pinch-hitting on guitar for Raw Power's James Williamson who had to return to Anaheim that night for his pre-booked (way before the Ron Jam was announced) participation in the NAMM show, a giant electronics/technology/music/musical instruments annual event. In fact, I took the photos of James for Blackstar Amplifiers as showcased therein and for its current print ads (see photo blog HERE.)

Above, Leanna's dad, Scott "Rock Action" Asheton, the drummer who has influenced everyone, and her late uncle Ron Asheton circa 1992. (next, time warp to a two years later portrait of Leanna.)

Yet another original Stooge, saxophonist Steve Mackay 
of "Funhouse" notoriety (and an essential component 
of the current reunion tour spotlighted on Youtube in 
their Brazil Nov. 2009 gig that featured the return of James Williamson to the Stooges after his 38-year-absence, slashing out his breakneck-speed "Search 
And Destroy" simultaneous leads and chords as if 
he never had left. Mackay's riffing works as a 
second guitar fill, while his soloing provides 
an interlude to clear the stage of audience 
member-dancers invited onstage by singer 
Iggy Pop to rowdily commune, 
Stooges-style.)



Astonishing bassist/singer Mike Watt in action and with Scott Thurston, Stooge to Stooge.

Singer Lillian Berlin, right, of The Living Things, the band of brothers, is the husband of Floria Sigismondi, director of the new biofilm on The Runaways with Dakota Fanning as Cherie Currie and that Twilight girl as Joan Jett, due for release early this year. Good pedigree!

Fetching and talented bassist Paz Lenchatin from The Entrance Band, an electronic effects-loving guitar/bass/drums trio.

The Raw Power Rangers (Stooges' tribute band) singer David Arnson gets backed by a real Stooge and a Germ.

Awesome Color guitarist Derek Stanton, right, nobly emotes while Circus Boy singer Mike Jtone prepares to trash his jam band members Steve Mackay and Scott Thurston's instruments, careening around spilling beer and unbottled water on keyboards, sax mikes et al. I found this a puzzling response to the recent redemption of the longtime feloniously undervalued, underdog Stooges, heroes of myself and most in the know for the last 40 years. IMHO, it came off as a lame shtick. Steve Mackay's onstage reaction is posted last...

JAMES WILLIAMSON for Blackstar Amplifiers

James Williamson of Iggy and The Stooges proved a dapper model indeed in our shoot for Blackstar Amplifiers. This photo should be appearing on ads in Guitar Player magazine and assorted promo centered around the NAMM show mid-January in Los Angeles, which the celebrated Stooges' guitarist will attend.

THE DOGS LIVE NEW YEAR'S EVE with THE ZEROS

photos (C) 2010 Heather Harris (hey, a new decade to copyright!)
A terrific way to ring in the new year: The Dogs co-billed with The Zeros at the Redwood, downtown L.A. last night for New Year's Eve. Anyone local here who wants to see monster players like The Dogs in action along with the always likable and popular Zeros, these two bands, both veterans of the 1970's L.A. punk scene comprised of original members, are appearing at the same venue tonight Jan. 1 as well.

Now, off to see the Scripps-Miramar Saddlebred horses in the Rose Parade on tv, survivors of the horrendous San Diego wildfires a few years ago. As a fire-evacuated horse-owner myself this last year, I empathize.

Happy New Decade

Happy New Decade


Here's a 17-year-old Rita Hayworth hoofing her teenaged heart out, to help you celebrate New Year's Eve dancing, whether actively or vicariously. (Her best routine, the Shorty George with Fred Astaire in "You Were Never Lovelier" hasn't made it to Youtube yet.)

Happy Last Decade
Here's my list for RocksBackPages of my favorite, significant 20 releases of 2000-2009 (I was congratulated for my last choice as "brave.")

Awesome Color: Electric Aborigines
The Black Crowes: Lions
Johnny Cash: The Man Comes Around
Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds: Dig!! Lazarus, Dig!!
Chainsaw: We Are Not Very Nice
The Detroit Cobras: Life, Love and Leaving
The Dogs:Fed Up!
The Fiery Furnaces: Gallowsbird's Bark
The Flaming Lips: Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots
Petra Hayden Sings The Who Sell Out
MGMT: Oracular Spectacular
The Raveonettes: Whip It On Recorded in Glorious B Flat Minor
Sonic's Rendezvous Band
The Stooges: You Don't Want My Name You Want My Action
Tool: 10,000 Days
Gillian Welch: Time (the Revelator)
Brian Wilson: Smile
Amy Winehouse: Back to Black
Scott Walker: The Drift

JUDAS PRIEST LIVE

photo (C) Heather Harris. All Rights Reserved. Judas Priest live at some metal festival in my native L.A., gawd knows when. I quite like the fringe on Rob's jacket, little bats and things. Why did I, or anyone else, shoot black and white in the pre-digital Pleistocene? Because that's what the magazine that this was going to go in was going to print it in. My high-key/high contrast choices made in the darkroom would, I knew, reproduce better than theirs with a color original.

X-mas

As fellow blogspotter Evanesco so noted, it's not Christmas until I post "It Came Upon A Midnight Clear" (yes, I draw too) and my Goth tree, both from my daze of sending Xmas cards.

GUNS N' ROSES, MISGUIDED, and WHY I DON'T LIKE CHRISTMAS

photo © 1989 Heather Harris. All Rights Reserved.

It was the end of the 1980's, my most lucrative decade of photographic work. Hair metal, post-punk and proto-grunge had been very, very good to me. But life events caught up with me bigtime in the last dwindling days of the decade. My graphic art business was sued and taxed out of existence by the California State Board of Equalization, who had decided that drawing art was a quantifiable product, not a service (how many yards of art would you like, sir?) My favorite cousin was diagnosed with AIDS, a death sentence then which indeed ensued. My beloved grandfather died on my birthday. My favorite local colleague and friend Suzan Carson (she did the Kill City Iggy and James Williamson pix, see LINK) died of cancer on Christmas Eve. And my close friend in England Shelley Benoit, the one who had introduced my better half and me 20 years prior to this, died on Christmas day of a completely preventable medical accident in hospital in Cornwall.

To say I was reeling in my psyche would have been an understatement. One's first flurry of personal deaths is usually the hardest. Post Christmas, I did not go to sleep for 5 days and nights in a row, 80% harrowing emotional inertia, 20% "other" (it was the 1980's and I did work in the music business.)

Then metal group Misguided, whom I had photographed in my studio, invited me to photograph their well-publicized debut at the Whisky. I noticed someone from the Group of the Hour, Guns n' Roses, hanging off the front of the stage like some kid at Altamont, a very unusual display of musical fandom from a ridiculously timely superstar. I don't normally corner stars a la paparazzo, but I felt that my clients would love a photo of themselves with the Guns guy, and he just might have enjoyed their set enough to be approachable.

So I did. At first he made a sign of the cross to get the vampire away, and then it hit me. Having been up for 5 days and nights straight, I looked like Keith Richards, the living dead, the hills have eyes, army of darkness, tales from the crypt and all decadent rock stars rolled into one, which is to say I looked like complete hell, which is to say I looked like "one of us" to the Guns' n' Roses guitarist. Who amiably said "yes."

So above is my backstage photo of Izzy Stradlin with 3 of the 4 members of Misguided. And the first paragraph should be self-explanatory as to why I don't exactly celebrate Christmas. At the Fastfilm and Mr. Twister residence during the holidays there is no tree, there are no decorations, just presents for friends to cherish the ones that are still alive.

There's a photo of Suzan Carson at LINK. Below, Mr. Twister, Shelley Benoit and yours truly in London and Warwick, England, autumn, 1978

KATEY SAGAL singing

photo (C) Heather Harris. All rights reserved. Katey Sagal, pre-Married With Children, pre-Lost, pre-Sons of Anarchy, singing at the Palomino, North Hollywood, California with Jimmy Wood, god knows when. However, I do recall that she was singing "Hey Gyp" as Donovan recorded the song (also known as "Chevrolet" by its writers The Jim Kweskin Jug Band and also when covered by a solo Maria Muldaur, whose voice Sagal's somewhat resembles albeit bluesier.) A legitimate working vocalist, Ms. Sagal also was tapped by Bette Midler to sing backup as a "Harlette" for their 1979 tour.

Above, Jimmy Wood still rocking on harp 9.8.11 live with the Michael Des Barres Band.

SONIC YOUTH LIVE

Photo (C) 1991 Heather Harris. Sonic Youth live. Great band, great people. Their boutique label Ecstatic Peace signed and released 2 cds by my fave newish band Awesome Color (LINK.)