Well, we have a small confession to make, but the album "Defenders of the Faith" is one of our favorites in the "Judas Priest" repertoire. True, it lacks the primacy of "Sin After "Sin", it is also lack the hits such in " British Steel " and does not have the cruel fangs of " Painkiller ". But there's something about it that makes us want to listen to it time and time again, even four decades after it's release. This album which was released on January 4, 1984 is a direct, yet darker and gloomier sequel, to " Screaming for Vengeance ". "Judas Priest" used the same successful formula of the previous album, but with a little twist. Even the album cover shows the similarities between them. " Screaming for Vengeance " shows the flying "Hellion" in most of its glory, while this album gives as the "Metallian". On the back of the cover you can even find a sentence that connects the two albums as follows: "Rising from darkness where Hell hath no mercy and the screams for vengeance echo on forever. Only those who keep the faith shall escape the wrath of the Metallian ... Master of all metal ". Did we say that there is something in this album that makes us come back to it again and again? So one of the reasons for that is Rob Halford who just surpasses himself here. This is one of the albums with his best vocal performance. These are not only the insane high notes he reaches (listen to him for example at the 3:00 minute of " Jawbreaker "), it's also his incredible voice control and his ability to turn it into a musical instrument that blends in amazingly with the band. Listen to him in the song " The Sentinel " for example, especially in the chorus starting at 0:50 in the studio version and you will understand what we are talking about. It's not that on other albums his voice was any less good. God forbid. It is simply that here the melody, dynamics, diversity and power are simply amazing. Another reason we love this album so much, lies in the crazy collaboration of K.K. Downing and Glenn Tipton. Even the transfer of the baton between Johan Blake and Usain Bolt at the relay race in the London 2012 Olympics was not as synchronized as those two. Listen to their performance in the song " Rock Hard Ride Free ". for example. Notice how K.K.'s solo starts at 2:34 (studio version) and his smooth “baton transfer” to Tipton at exactly 3:02 and from there to their duet at 3:30. This song by the way is an outtake from the previous album then called "Fight for Your Life". The song was recorded in 1982 but did not make it to the final mix of " Screaming for Vengeance ". For the current album the band "renovated", "repaired" and re-recorded it, and maybe for the good, because it just sounds amazing. From here we move on to the third and overwhelming reason why we love this album so much. Prepper yourself to a statement that might raise your eyebrows: In our humble opinion, the song sequence on the first side of this album is the best of "Judas Priest's" repertoire. It opens with " Freewheel Burning "'s Speed Metal with Dave Holand's insane double bass drumming, Tipton's neoclassical solo, and Halford 's fast and powerful singing that match the insane song rhythm. It continues with the amazing " Jawbreaker " that "drops our jaws" over and over again, just like its name. The song's amazing and iconic riff and Halford's staccato cuts in singing, just do it for us. It continues with the amazing guitar collaboration of " Rock Hard Ride Free " and with one of Halford's greatest vocal performances in the song " The Sentinel ", which we mentioned above. Don't get us wrong. The other side of the album also features great songs, like " Some Heads Are Gonna Roll " and " Night Comes Down ", that connect to Priest's more melodic and subtle side, or like the closing song " Heavy Duty " that connects with the repetitive track " Defenders of the Faith ". So true, this album is not really perfect. " Love Bites " contains eighties-pop influences that will only intensify on the album " Turbo ". " Eat Me Alive " is perhaps the filler on this album that also caused harsh reactions from the "Parents Music Resource Center", which labeled it with the dubious title "Filthy Fifteen" due to lyrics That imply on oral sex. But even this so-called album's "flaw", sent "Judas Priest" to write the excellent song " Parental Guidance " in response to the "PMRC". This song will be included in the next album " Turbo ". For Listening: Spotify , Apple Music "Face/Off" - Israel's Rock Blog Follow us on Facebook  / Instagram  or Subscribe to our website

On January 20, 1983, Def Leppard's third album, "Pyromania", was released. It's Def Leppard's meteoric breakthrough album. An album that sold over 10 million copies in the US alone and was crowned by the RIAA as a "diamond" album (ten times gold). The album jumped straight to number two on the US Billboard charts and it would undoubtedly would have "conquered the summit", had it not been for Michael Jackson's "Thriller" album, which has been around at the top for a very long time. On this album, the band made a change and transition from the Heavy Metal roots that characterized the first two albums, towards upgraded Hard Rock and even Glam Metal, while adopting a "friendlier" and more accessible style. (Photo: Wallpaperflare.com) The change in sound and style making the band accessible to the masses can be attributed to the magician (no less) producer Robert John "Mutt" Lange, who worked with AC/DC's on the album " Highway To Hell " and later on the album " Back In Black " and led them to their meteoric success. Similar to what he did in his work with "AC/DC", Lange also change "Def Leppard's" sound and made it more catchy and accessible. In this case, too, Lange pushed "Def Leppard" to excellence with a lot of hard work and considerable studio hours. He even took matters into his own hands and helped the band write some of the songs, for which he also received credit. In keeping with the formula that worked well with "AC/DC", Lange emphasized the "double guitar" sound of "Def Leppard" and in particular the vocal harmonies of the band members, while also contributing his vocals as a background singer. Although the change began on the previous album, " High 'n' Dry " from 1981, it was tightened and perfected by Lange on "Pyromania". As it turned out, after two traditional heavy metal albums, Matt Lange helped "Def Leppard" perform the "metamorphosis" needed for a friendlier Heavy Metal/Glam Rock sound, which would lead to their big break in the US and buy them a dizzying global success. The record company, which expressed faith in the band and the producer, helped Matt Lange and the band achieve an amazing result. They gave them an almost free hand during the recordings, which lasted almost a whole year (from January to November 1982), with a huge budget of about 1 million Dollars. In doing so, the record company took a huge risk, as the huge budget required a minimum sales of one million copies to balance and start making a profit. The risk taken by the record company is largely based on Matt Lange's great results with "AC/DC", on the albums " Highway To Hell " and " Back In Black ", as well as the relative success of the song "Bringin' On The Heartbreak" from the band's previous album - " High 'n' Dry " , which was also produced by Lange and won reruns on MTV. When Lange and "Def Leppard" began recording the album, esteemed guitarist Pete Willis was still part of the band and recorded all of the rhythm guitar roles on the album. Unfortunately, Pete Willis was fired towards the end of the recordings, due to his alcohol problems. He was replaced by guitarist Phil Collen, who already on his second day with the band contributed the guitar solo for the song " Stagefright ". This album maintains a high standard of musical writing and performance almost throughout. From " Rock! Rock! (Till You Drop) " with the dramatic intro that goes through several variations before Steve Clark 's riff kicks in and takes this song to stadium anthem level, to the closing track " Billy's Got a Gun " that really makes us smell the "Danger in the Air" until the melodramatic ending with the "Bang, Bang" and the somewhat hallucinatory electronic drum loop. One of the main features of this album, which will immediately catch your ears, is the extensive emphasis given to the vocal harmonies. The vocals are brought forward in the mix and serve as an additional musical instrument in the overall production. In our humble opinion, this is what sets this album apart from the rest of the "New Wave of British heavy metal" bands, that were active at the time. Singer Joe Elliott gives an impressive purposeful display that showcases his vocal diversity, which ranges from rough and hoarse to soft and caressing. But the highlight is the background vocals of all the other band members plus producer Matt Lange, who form a sort of escort choir for Elliott and well justifies the nickname they received in the credits - "The Leppardettes". This album has produced some of the greatest songs in the band's huge repertoire, even compared to the mega hits that will arrive on the next album " Hysteria ". Songs such as " Photograph ", " Rock of Ages ", " Too Late for Love " and " Foolin' ", became memorable anthems and were played incessantly on various radio stations and MTV, giving the band dizzying success and placing it in the front line of The best-selling bands in the world. It is interesting to note that the album features two surprising session players. The first was keyboardist Tony Kaye known as one of the founders of the progressive rock band "Yes". The second was Thomas Dolby, the Synth-Pop and New Wave artist who assisted Matt Lange in the production and played keyboards on the album as "Booker T. Boffin". Dolby, who just finished working on his hit "She Blinded Me With Science", so he wanted to hide behind a fake name, so as not to confuse his "Poppy" solo career with the fact that he plays on a Heavy Metal album. For Listening: Spotify , Apple Music "Face/Off" - Israel's Rock Blog Follow us on Facebook  / Instagram  or Subscribe to our website

On October 4, 1970, Janis Joplin was found dead from a heroin overdose and is only 27 years old. (Photo: David Gahr) Here are 30 facts about one of Rock's greatest female singers: 1. She was born on January 19, 1943, in Texas USA. 2. Joplin was brilliant and outstanding at school. 3. At the same time Joplin was socially rejected, partly because she was different and very fond of blues music, which in her childhood was associated mainly with "African-American". 4. During her time at Texas University, she was named the Ugliest person on Campus. It hit her very hard and left her with scars that caused her to leave school and Texas for San Francisco. 5. She was bisexual and had relationships with women and men alike. 6. One of the relationships with men was with singer Leonard Cohen. Cohen also wrote the song "Chelsea Hotel No. 2" about her. 7. Although she had many relationships and was always surrounded by people, Joplin was very lonely and could not maintain a serious relationship over time. 8. The album "Cheap Thrills" which she released with "Big Brother and the Holding Company" was originally supposed to be called "Sex, Dope And Cheap Thrills", but due to the opposition of the record company the name was shortened. 9. Her most recent recording was a birthday greeting to John Lennon . 10. Despite her low self-confidence, she liked to get rid of most of her clothes on stage. 11. In 1969 she was arrested in her locker room after cursing cops who tried to calm the rioting crowd at a show she held in Tampa Florida. The judge she was brought before released her stating that she had exercised her right to "freedom of expression". 12. She was very fond of the drink "Southern Comfort". In response, the beverage company gave her a fur coat as a token of appreciation for her contribution to raising sales of the intoxicating beverage. (Photo: Phactual.com) 13. She also broke a "Southern Comfort" bottle on Jim Morrison 's head when he tried to kiss her. 14. Joplin had a black belt in karate. 15. She built a tombstone on the grave of one of her childhood heroes, blues singer Bessie Smith, after discovering that she was buried in an unmarked grave without a tombstone. 16. Joplin was also influenced by another African-American blues singer - Billie Holiday. 17. She adored Tina Turner and also got to perform with her on one stage in 1969. (Photo: Amalie R. Rothschild) 18. In 2015 the Porsche 365 car she purchased in 1968, with the psychedelic paintings, was sold for a fantastic price of $ 1.76 million. (Photo: FanBuzz) 19. She received great publicity at the Monterey International Pop Music Festival in 1967, where she gave an unforgettable performance. She performed the song "Ball and Chain" twice to the enthusiastic demand of the audience. 20. On the other hand, she asked not to be included in the post-festival documentary on Woodstock . She thought her performance there was not good enough. 21. Joplin was among the first artists to enter the dubious "Club 27". She was preceded by Brian Jones and Jimi Hendrix , followed by artists such as Jim Morrison , Kurt Cobain , Amy Winehouse, and more. 22. Her ashes were scattered from a plane over the Pacific Ocean. 23. She changed her last will only 3 days before her death. In the amended will, she ordered, among other things, to leave an amount between $ 1,500-2,500 (there is a dispute as to the amount) for a party to be held after her death. 24. Such a party was indeed held about three weeks after her death on October 26, 1970. "The Grateful Dead" performed at the party and rumor has it that marijuana cookies were distributed there. 25. The last love letter sent to her arrived one day too late. David Niehaus whom she fell in love with while trying to quit drugs, sent her a telegram, to the hotel where she was staying. The letter arrived the day after her death and read "Love you Mama, more than you know." 26. Despite her meteoric success she only had one single that became a "hit" - "Me and Bobby Mcgee". This too was not her original song, but a cover. 27. Joplin did not know that her latest album " Pearl " would become her best-selling album. The name "Pearl" was also the nickname given to her by her close friends. 28. Although she did not finish recording the album " Pearl " before her death, the album was later released. Creepily, Joplin was supposed to record the song "Buried Alive in the Blues" on the day of her death, but she did not reach the studio and it remained instrumental... 29. Her sister Laura was the one who wrote her biography after her death. 30. She was inducted into the "Rock N Roll Hall Of Fame" only in 1995, twenty-five years after her death. "Face/Off" - Israel's Rock Blog Follow us on Facebook  / Instagram  or Subscribe to our website

Singer Rod Evans, who was the first frontman of "Deep Purple" in its first incarnation, is celebrating a birthday today! (Photo: WordPress) As mentioned, he was the first singer of "Deep Purple" in the MKI lineup, that included Ritchie Blackmore , Ian Paice , Jon Lord and Nick Simper. Rod was born in Eaton, Buckinghamshire , England, on January 19, 1947. Beginning in the mid - 1960s, Evans replaced a number of bands, such as "The Horizons" and "The Maze", in which he played alongside Ian Paice . In 1968, Evans was one of the founders of "Deep Purple". Bassist Nick Simper said he earned his place in the band after offering the members a ballad version of the song "Help!" from "The Beatles". This version finally found its place on the first album of "Deep Purple" from 1968, called "Shades Of Deep Purple". Evans released 3 iconic albums along with "Deep Perple", the debut album "Shades Of Deep Purple", the second "The Book of Taliesyn", both from 1968 and the third album " Deep Purple " from 1969. He was a part of creating and performing masterful songs such as: "Hush", "Anthem", "April", "Lalena" and "Emaretta". Following the release of the band's third album, during a tour of the US, keyboardist Jon Lord, guitarist Ritchie Blackmore and drummer Ian Paice met to discuss the band's future. It was clear to all three that singer Rod Evans had a clean and "poppy" voice and that both he and bassist Nick Simper would not fit into the new style in which the band was going, so it was decided to replace them. As early as June 1969, the same month of the band's third album release, Ian Gillan and Roger Glover were selected to replace Evans and Simper. They where both members of "Episode Six", but at this point their identities were still kept secret as well as the intention to fire Evans and Simper. None of the members of "Deep Purple" didn't wanted to be the one to deliver the bad news to them and the two learned about their dismissal from reading the newspaper. After "Deep Purple", Evans and his then girlfriend moved to the US and lived in Los Angeles, with the intention that Evans would develop a career as an actor. In 1971 he released a single called "Hard To Be Without You", and shortly afterwards he formed the band "Captain Beyond", which included members of the band "Iron Buttefly", after it disbanded in 1971. Evans' first appearance with "Captain Beyond" "Held on April 30, 1972. He released two albums with them in the years 72-73, but following their commercial failure he decided to retire from music. In 1980, he followed his manager advice and formed a band that operated under the name "The New Deep Purple". The band performed in the United States. Evans' promoter took advantage of the fact that in those years "Deep Purple" was inactive and he tried to make money by using the "purple" brand name in publications and posters, designed to promote Evans and his band. Incredibly annoying, the posters even included the band's logo from the album "Stormbringer" released by the band's MKIII lineup in 1975. Although Evans was the only member of the band to have a vague connection to "Deep Purple" in its MKI lineup, he was performing songs from the MKII lineups with Ian Gillan and MKIII linep with David Coverdale . Following this, the management of "Deep Purple" was forced to file a lawsuit against Evans and prevent the illegal use of the band name. Evans lost and was forced to pay a fantastic sum for those days in the amount of $ 672,000. In addition, Evans lost the right to receive royalties from the band's first three albums in which he participated. This incident led to a conclusion among all the band members from its various lineups, that anyone who wants to use the "Deep Purple" brand will be able to do so only if there are three members in the linep who were part of the band. Since that lawsuit, Evans has disappeared from the cameras and is no longer seen in public. In 2015 Ian Paice noted that if anyone knows about Evans' whereabouts or even if he is still "on Earth", these would be good news for him. That same year "Captain Beyond" drummer stated that he was in touch with Rod and that he had been working in the medical field for a long time. In 2016, "Deep Purple" entered the " Rock and Roll Hall of Fame " and Evans was to receive the award along with the rest of his friends from the band's various lineups. Evans was not present at the ceremony. "Face/Off" - Israel's Rock Blog Follow us on Facebook  / Instagram  or Subscribe to our website

On January 19, 1988, "Megadeth" released their third album "So Far, So Good ... So What!" The name of the album was a sort of statement of intent by Dave Mustaine , meant to make it clear that the band did not give the relative success of the album " Peace Sells... but Who's Buying ?" From 1986, to change them. He noted that it was precisely this relative success that drove him to take the band in more extreme directions on this album. But, to fulfill his vision, Dave had to fire half of his lineup before recording the album. Guitarist Chris Poland and drummer Gar Samuelson were kicked out of the band, due to drug addiction issues, forcing Dave Mustaine and David Ellefson to look for their replacements. Chuck Behler who was Samuelson's drum technician - was given the role of drummer. For the position of guitarist Dave initially chose Jay Reynolds who was then part of the band "Malice", however, Reynolds was replaced shortly after, failing to "deliver the goods". Reynolds was just not at the level demanded from "Megadeth" guitarist. He had to invite his music teacher Jeff Young to the studio to help him learn the solo roles. Eventually, Reynolds was dismissed and his teacher Jeff Young got the role in his place. This album marked a turning point as opposed to the two previous albums, in which Dave Mustaine was the sole writer. Here, for the first time, half of the songs were written in collaboration with bassist David Ellefson who proved that he is capable of contributing his talent to the creative process. The album opens up "big", "rich" and "bombastic", with the instrumental section " Into the Lungs of Hell ", to the sounds of trumpets, brass instruments, and rolling drums played by a synthesizer. This intro gives a feeling that we are on the verge of an epic musical piece, usually preserved for prog and/or for concept albums. Without a doubt, this is an amazing opening that creates a crazy build-up for what comes next. The second track " Set the World Afire " is the first song Dave wrote after being fired from "Metallica". He did so on his way by bus from New York to Los Angeles, a four-day trip in which he had enough time to think, ponder and write. For more about Dave's dismissal Read here: " Dave Mustaine Fired From Metallica ". Dave claims he wrote the lyrics on a cupcake wrapper, after being inspired by a newspaper headline referring to the nuclear arms race noting: "The arsenal of Megadeath can not be rid". At first, he intended to call the song "Megadeth" as it appeared in the title, but eventually, he kept the name for his band. It is interesting to note that the first seconds of the song include a symphony from the song "I Don't Want to Set the World on Fire" performed by the jazz band " The Ink Spots " back in 1941. The third track " Anarchy in the U.K " is a cover version of the iconic song by the "Sex Pistols", with only slightly different lyrics. At this point, it can already be said that the inclusion of a cover song on a Megadeth album has already become a tradition, after the first two albums included one such song. The recording of the song also features "Sex Pistols" guitarist, Steve Jones, whom Dave specifically invited to play the solo. Dave said Jones came to the studio riding a motorcycle and with a broken hand, but nonetheless, he did his job excellently. As for the payment for his participation in the song, Jones asked Dave for a payment of $ 100 and in addition some time with a prostitute, in advance, and before the recording. Dave who did not know if Jones was serious or not, told him that he did not intend to invite a prostitute to the studio and offered him a thousand dollars so that he could do whatever he want with them. It is interesting to note that this song was an integral part of the band's setlist for years, but after Dave become more religious he stopped performing it in Megadeth's shows. " Mary Jane " which ends the first side of the vinyl tells the story of a witch named Mary Jane who was buried alive by her father near Loon Lake Cemetery in Minnesota. The song opens with the words of Dave inviting her to rise from the dead, when later he says that anyone who will dare to disturb her peace of death will be haunted by him. The number in the title of the song " 502 " opening the second side of the album, is the "drunk driving code" of the Los Angeles Police Department. It really sounds to us like a track that could serve as a crazy soundtrack to a car chase, especially when more or less in the middle of the song the sounds of the police sirens are heard. " In My Darkest Hour " was written by Dave Mustaine as soon as he received the news of the tragic death of Cliff Burton - "Metallica" bass player. Mustaine who was Burton's best friend, testified that as soon as he heard about the tragic death he drove to downtown Los Angeles, bought heroin, cried for the death of his friend, and out of tears composed the song "In My Darkest Hour". Although Burton was the inspiration for this masterpiece song, its lyrics don’t really refer to him. They talk about staying true to your friends and being there for them in their most difficult times. Dave later noted that the lyrics of the song also refer to his ex-girlfriend Diana who was the inspiration for writing more of Megadeth's songs such as "Tornado of Souls" and "Trust". The first time the band performed the song in a concert Cliff Burton 's parents were present in crowd and Dave said he was really overwhelmed with emotions. " Liar " was written by Dave about the band's former guitarist Chris Poland, who according to Dave, sold his guitars to buy heroin. The concluding track " Hook in Mouth " points an accusing finger at the censorship organization " Parents Music Resource Center " or PMRC for short, led by Tipper Gore, who according to Dave Mustaine , violates American freedom of expression. The album was produced by Paul Lani, but Mustaine did not get along with him and so German producer and technician Michael Wagener, who worked with "Accept" and "Metallica", replaced him. But even that did not satisfy Dave who later said the album's production was not good enough. "So Far, So Good ... So What!" In our opinion, did not receive the respect it deserves, and all this is not really related to the quality of the album. Fate wanted that this album was released between two masterpieces " Peace Sells... but Who's Buying ?" From 1986 and " Rust In Peace " from 1990. This did put So Far, So Good ... So What!" in the shadow of these two giants. But make no mistake, despite the raw sound and the complex and dark atmosphere this album is without a doubt a classic in itself. Despite the difficult circumstances that surrounded it, this album was very successful in sales and sold about 400,000 copies in the first month of its release, when it eventually gained platinum status. It crowned Dave Mustaine as a Metal God and a master of riff writing, as he will prove yet again in the band's next albums. For Listening: Spotify , Apple Music "Face/Off" - Israel's Rock Blog Follow us on Facebook  / Instagram  or Subscribe to our website

Written By: Moti Kupfer Release date - 18.01.1994 “You and Dylan (Carlson) are my only friends. You’re the only people I trust.” Kurt Cobain  did not have many true friends he felt comfortable opening up to. Mark Lanegan , the singer of the grunge band Screaming Trees, was perhaps the person closest to him. It is doubtful that Courtney Love , Cobain’s widow, would have been pleased to hear that fact. In the end, Lanegan and Cobain bonded almost immediately after a Nirvana show held in a remote library in Ellensburg, Lanegan’s hometown. Mark foresaw a bright future for "Nirvana" and even prevented Krist Novoselic  from joining his own band when Novoselic briefly considered it. Cobain and Lanegan shared a similar outlook, free of rock-star pretensions, and connected deeply on both an ideological and musical level. Their most troubling shared habit was heroin injection, a path they followed after bonding over the writings of author William S. Burroughs. Lanegan, who rejected the term “grunge” as a label coined by critics, was nonetheless part of the wave of rock bands that swept through Seattle and carried it upward in the early 1990s. But just as meteoric as the rise, the fall of that generation was harsh, fast, and painful. Many succumbed to the bitter drop, fell into addiction, and struggled to meet the relentless expectations of the music industry over time. Mark Lanegan was no stranger to these struggles, both among his peers and within himself. He became a drug addict and dealer, spiraled into homelessness, and came dangerously close to the end. Just before reaching that point, he listened to advice given by the most vilified widow since Yoko Ono, Courtney Love, and managed to break free from his destructive habits. Lanegan was born in November 1964 in Ellensburg, into a dysfunctional, criminal family he repeatedly tried and failed to escape. His father was an alcoholic involved in crime, while his mother subjected him to verbal abuse and forced him into dangerous physical labor. By the age of twelve, he had already earned the dubious title of “the neighborhood alcoholic.” At eighteen, he began using drugs, was arrested for possession and dealing, and served a full year in prison. For an entire decade at the start of his career, Lanegan was consumed by drugs and alcohol, moving in and out of rehabilitation centers. In 1994, after nearly three years of work and after almost being discarded due to his addiction issues, Lanegan released his second solo album, "Whiskey for the Holy Ghost", on January 18, 1994. It was an album more cohesive and mature than its predecessor. In both his work and his persona, Lanegan embodies two parallel systems of imagery: that of the American Western, set against Christian religious symbolism. Ellensburg is a small Western town whose central annual event is the rodeo, and all the images that would accompany Lanegan throughout his creative life are already present on this album. He sings about carnivals and rural fairs in "Shooting Gallery" , about traveling circuses and freak shows operating on the fringes of the law and society, about old Jack who is shot and buried under cover of night in "Judas Touch" , about hillbillies and rural orchestras of wandering musicians, and about his own struggle with alcoholism in "Borracho" . Lanegan allows his emotions to break free, learning to embrace pain in "Riding the Nightingale" , and opens the album with a tribute to his close friend Kurt Cobain in "The River Rise" . On his second solo album, Lanegan continues to move away from the sound associated with his role as the singer of "Screaming Trees", a process he had already begun four years earlier. Here, the arrangements incorporate softer, acoustic instruments, including organ, violins, saxophones, and piano. All of these elements contribute to a far darker and more intimate musical experience, allowing his bourbon and nicotine-soaked voice (often compared to that of Chris Rea) to transform the deep sorrow of country blues into something entirely new and unmistakably his own. Despite the close bond between Lanegan and Kurt Cobain, Lanegan was deeply consumed by his own struggles in April 1994 when Cobain returned to Seattle and called him. “Hey man, it’s Kurt. I’m back in town. What are you doing? Come over and listen to some records with me.” Lanegan did not go, nor did he call back. He lacked the patience to be present if another argument were to erupt between Cobain and his partner, Courtney Love. A few hours later, Cobain’s lawyer called Lanegan. He did not answer her either, but her message startled him: “Mark, if you know where Kurt is, you have to tell me. Now.” Lanegan did not know where Cobain was, nor did he know that Cobain had left the rehabilitation facility where he had been staying. As the hours passed and Cobain failed to appear, Lanegan began searching for him everywhere. Eventually, they drove to a house that belonged to Cobain near Lake Washington. Lanegan stepped outside to smoke, noticed a room above the garage, and knocked on the door. No one answered. A day or two later, he received the news: Cobain’s body had been found in the room above the garage. “Until I wrote this book, I never told this to anyone, maybe a few close friends. I kept it to myself because I was ashamed and because I suppressed it. I know that if I had called, he would have answered the phone. The fact that I didn’t answer Kurt when he tried to reach me will probably haunt me until the day I die.” For Listening : Spotify , Apple Music "Face/Off" - Israel's Rock Blog Follow us on Facebook  / Instagram  or Subscribe to our website

On his ID card, it says "Cool Man" in Rock & Roll. He is a fan favorite. He's the nice guy in the industry and he's one of the most prominent, great, and talented musicians who leads one of the great bands of our generation. He is Dave Grohl and he was born on January 14, 1969 (Photo: Thomas Frey) = His full name is David Eric Grohl. = Dave was born in Ohio, to a teacher mother and a journalist father who divorced when he was 7 years old. = At the age of 12 he started learning to play the guitar. Very quickly he got tired of teachers, so he continued to teach himself and formed a band with his friends. = Dave and his sister Lisa, who is three years younger than him, loved music from both ends. He was looking for the weedy, the strong and the dark and she used to dance to the sounds of "new wave" music. = At age 13, during one summer in the city of Illinois, Tracy, his cousin, changed Dave's life forever. You could say that like in the movies - this was the turning point from which it all started. Tracy took Dave and Lisa to a number of punk rock bands shows and from there falling in love was inevitable. Dave and his sister began researching and learning everything related to the genre. = During high school, Dave's mother felt that smoking (not cigarettes) was degrading him and decided to move him to another high school. Soon after she moved him all over again, switching between three high schools was not easy for Dave and music was the cure. (Photo: MICHEL LINSSEN) = During this period Dave played in several different bands while at the same time teaching himself to play drums as well. Now is the time to reveal that Dave never took a single drum lesson! Sorry, correction a half lesson... = Dave and his mother used to visit a jazz club near their home every week. At the same club there were very talented jazz players to whom Dave looked up. He greatly appreciated the talent, technique and dynamics of those musicians. One of the most prominent drummers in the club was Lenny Robinson. On one of the occasions they visited the club, Dave gained a lot of courage and asked Lenny to teach him to play drums. Dave managed to organize a Tama set from his bandmates and welcomed Lenny to their home. After Dave demonstrated to Lenny what he knowns, Lenny realized that huge hard work awaited him but Dave realized that his was his last lesson and from there he went on his own. = Dave always mentioned one character thanks to whom he started playing, a character who deeply influenced him and put the spark in his arms. Neil Peart , the drummer of the band "Rush" who passed away in January 2020 , is the one who made Dave turn the drums to his whole world. For those who don't know, when drummers listen to a song, they learn to play it by a certain movement of the body that follows the beat, for example tapping your fingers together or on a surface to learn the beat. Believe it or not but Dave would learn to play the beat by using his teeth !! During one visit to the dentist, the doctor asked Dave why he grinds his teeth, Dave replied that this is how he learns to play and at that moment he played him the song "YYZ" by Rush. = Dave said that the day he heard Rush's album "2112" his life changed and he decided to follow in the footsteps of Neil Peart and become a drummer. = Speaking of influences in Dave's life, another character who influenced his development as a drummer is another legendary drummer: John Bonham ("Led Zeppelin"). Dave tattooed on his elbow the symbol of the three rings, which is symbolized John Bonham. = In his youth he played in the band "Freak Baby" as a guitarist, when at a certain point the members of the band changed and he decided to move drums seat. Later, the band changed its name to "Mission Impossible". = After leaving "Mission Impossible" and replacing another band on the way, he arrived at the age of 17 straight for auditions for the punk rock band "Scream". He auditioned, dropped out of school and joined the band. (Photo: Naomi Peterson) = He spent 4 years with the band and fulfilled his dream as a drummer in a punk band that has performed all over the world. Along the way he released with the band a number of live albums and two studio albums: "No More Censorship" and "Fumble". = It was a groundbreaking band in the punk and hard rock genres in late 1980s Washington. They combined fast-paced rhythms with political and social texts and a commercial and condescending approach. For Dave it was also a groundbreaking period, he fulfilled his dream, to travel in a van across the US and perform everywhere possible while living as "punk rock" in every possible sense. = Dave began his acquaintance with the grunge scene during the tour of "Scream", when he became a fan of the band "Melvins" and connected with the singer, guitarist and founder of the band Buzz Osborne. = When his band "Scream" broke up, he sought Buzz's advice and he referred him to Kurt Cobain and Krist Novoselic . He picked up the phone, talked with the guys and they invited him to audition in Seattle. = Dave, as we know, passed the audition successfully and joined the band "Nirvana". His first appearance with the band was in October 1990. The band was in the process of searching for a record deal with their debut album, "Bleach" , and a number of demo tapes for the next album. (Photo: ED SIRRS) = An important point in the history of Nirvana and also of Dave is that contrary to the expected option, that the band would sign with the local record company Sub Pop which led the grunge scene at the time, it actually signed with the big record company "DGC Records". Contrary to what we know from Cobain's approach to success when the band signed the contract, Cobain promised the record company that they were going to be the biggest band in history!! = And then it happened. In the spring of 1991, the band entered the legendary recording studio "Sound City" and recorded the groundbreaking album of the 90's: "Nevermind" . = Against all expectations, the album was a dizzying international success and turned "Nirvana" into an iconic band. = The band released another studio album in 1993 called "In Utero" . The band has also released a number of live album albums, including the phenomenal album of the historic "MTV Unplugged" appearance. = Undoubtedly, Dave's period in Nirvana was one of the most influential and formative periods in his formation as a musician. He learned from Kurt how to relate to songs, how to write and how to process them into a final product. = During the period, in 1992, he wrote and recorded a number of songs into a mini-album / tape called "Pocketwatch" which he released under the name: "Late!". He wrote, played and recorded the entire album on his own. = During the recordings for the album "In Utero", Dave and Chris became more involved in the writing process. The band decided to record a song that Dave wrote "Color Pictures of a Marigold". The song was not released on the album but was released as a B-Side for the single "Heart Shaped Box" and was called "Marigold". = The band's last performance was in Munich, March 1994. In April 1994, Kurt Cobain was found dead with a gunshot wound to the head. = After Kurt's death and the dissolution of "Nirvana", Dave did not know what to do with himself. He received an offer to be the drummer of Tom Petty he even played with him on the Saturday Night Show but he felt that this is not his destiny. = Dave was lost after Cobain’s death. Making music became impossible, and even listening to it was too painful. Out of confusion and a need to escape, he packed a bag and traveled alone to Ireland. There, he rented a car and set out on long drives through remote, isolated villages, far from everything he knew. On one of those drives, in the middle of a completely desolate road, he noticed a hitchhiker standing by the side of the road. As he drew closer, he saw that the man was wearing a T-shirt printed with Kurt Cobain’s face. The moment struck him with full force. Shocked and unsettled by this unavoidable encounter with the past he was trying to escape, Dave kept driving and did not stop. That moment became a turning point in his life. It was then that he decided to “start over,” returning home with the resolve to move forward, keep living, and make music again. = He returned home and recorded a demo of 15 songs, with the exception of one guitar section, he played all the instruments on the album. Multi-instrumentalist? = Capitol Records signed Dave to a contract, but he did not want to turn it into a solo career so he recruited more musicians to complete as a band lineup. = He recruited Pat Smear , who played with him in "Nirvana", bassist Nate Mendel and drummer William Goldsmith, who both came from the band "Sunny Day Real Estate". (Photo: MICK HUTSON) = The demo was not re-recorded but just went through mastering and came out as the debut album of the band Foo Fighters . = In 1996 the band preformed their first gig in front of family and friends above the "West Marine" store in Mercer Street, Seattle. = In 1997, after touring for more than a year, Dave returned home, writing and recording a soundtrack for the movie "Touch". Here, too, Dave played all the instruments. Indeed a multi-instrumentalist! = That same year, the new band members, who had just performed together, came in to record the second album "The Colour and the Shape" . In fact, it was their first album as a band. After the recordings were finished and the band took a short vacation, Dave returned alone to the studio, he listened to the album again and was not satisfied with the drums part. He invited Pat and Nate and re-recorded all the drums parts on the album without William's knowledge. William, who found out about the matter only after the recordings were finished, was very hurt by Dave's behavior and decided to leave the band. = Just before leaving for the tour, the band was looking for a new drummer. Dave called Taylor Hawkins who was then Alanis Morissette 's drummer on her tour, and asked him if he have a recommendation for a drummer. When Taylor applied for the job himself Dave was surprised, but immediately agreed to the offer. = During the tour for the album, Pat decided he was tired of all the running and madness of a world tour and wanted to leave. Dave recruited Franz Stahl who was with him in the band "Scream", but the collaboration did not last long. = So back to the album... Despite the success of the first album, this album was the band's breakthrough with hits like "Everlong", "My Hero" and "Monkey Ranch", and it was a huge success. It took 10th place on Billboard chart and even reached higher on many charts in Europe and gave the band its first Grammy nomination. To this day it is the best-selling album of the band. = In 1999, After a long and exhausting tour, Dave returned to his home in Virginia and decided to start working on the next album. But this time alone, at home alone! Dave decided he was building a recording studio in his house. It was the first studio that Dave built but certainly not the last. He developed a hobby of building studios and later he built two or three more studios. = Without a contract, a record company, or a management company, without any outside interference, the three went down to the basement of Dave's house and started working on the third album. A friendship and creative collaboration were forged between the three, the relationship that created an amazing album, with the name reflecting the reality of the moment "There Is Nothing Left to Lose" . = The album was a great success and gave the band their first win at the Grammy ceremony, a win that continued with the following albums as well. The band went on tour in the US and Europe and had already become one of the biggest bands in the rock world. During the tour and at the same time the band was starting to work on the fourth album, Taylor was hospitalized due to an overdose of heroin and lay on the floor for two weeks. This event shook Dave and affected him badly, While Taylor was recovering at home, Dave accepted the offer of Josh Homme and joined the band "Queens of the Stone Age" with whom he recorded the album " Songs for the Deaf " . = The combination of bad recordings for the fourth album that initiated ugly relations between the band members together with the pleasure that Dave rediscovered when performing and recording with "Queens of the Stone Age" made him fed up and lose interest in his mother band. He abandoned the recordings completely and concentrated on other projects. = In the same year (2001) he recorded the role of the drums on the debut album of the band "Tenacious D" and also participated in the filming of the movie and the clip "The Pick of Destiny" in which he played the character of the devil. = In 2002 he also played guitar on the song "I've Been Waiting for You" from David Bowie 's album "Heathen". = Foo Fighters members returned for a number of shows and rediscovered the spark and enthusiasm. This instilled in them the desire to record the fourth album again and indeed it was re-recorded from beginning to end and was called "One By One" . = In November 2002, Dave reached a historic moment when he replaced himself three times at the head of the "Billboard Modern Rock" chart. Nirvana's song "You Know You're Right" was replaced by the Foos' "All My Life", which in turn was replaced by Queens of the Stone Age "No One Knows". Dave performed at the top of the charts for 17 weeks with three different bands. = He recorded the role of the drums on the second album of the band "Killing Joke". = During 2004 Dave moved his studio from Virginia to "Studio 606" which he built himself in Los Angeles. = That same year Dave set up a project called "Probot". Dave called it "A death metal Supernatural". This is a metal album that Dave recorded with various artists and singers from the metal world that he admired, musicians such as: Kim Thayil , Max Cavalera , Lemmy Kilmister , King Diamond , Jack Black and many more. = A year later the band released their fifth album, "In Your Honor" , a double album that included an acoustic album and an electric album. = In 2007 the band released their sixth album: "Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace" . = In 2009 the band released a Compilation album. The album was perceived by Dave as something wrong that reflected a will, as if the band had finished its journey. He was sure that the band would have many more albums to release in the future and indeed it was. = The band's seventh album is called "Wasting Light" and was released in 2011. This is the band's first album to reach number one in the charts. For us it's one of the band's best albums, if not the best of them all. = Dave fulfilled another dream when he and the Foos' were the ones who "inducted" the band "Rush" into the Rock and Roll Hall Of Fame in 2013. = That same year he released the documentary "Sound City" which tells the story of the acquisition of the mythological analog console that was used to record masterpieces like "Nevermind" in Sound City Studios, and was installed in Dave's home studio "Studio 606". Later, the film accompanies the recording of the album "Sound City - From Real To Reel" along with a large part of the great artists who were privileged to record masterful albums on the same console. = In 2014, the band released their eighth album, "Sonic Highways" , which told the story of music in a number of different cities in the United States. = In June 2015, during a performance in Sweden, Dave fell off the stage and broke his leg. The Foos' canceled part of the tour but since they wanted to avoid canceling it all, Dave built a "Game of Thrones" style chair and performed with it later in the tour. (Photo: C FLANIGAN) = The same chair was loaned to Axl Rose after he also broke his leg and he performed with Dave's chair in part of the Guns & Roses tour. = In December 2015, Dave participated in an episode of "The Muppets". In a hysterical moment in the episode, Dave held a drumming battle with "Animal", the drummer of "The Muppets". = The band's ninth album, called "Concrete and Gold" , was released in September 2017. (Photo: Brantley Gutierrez) = In August 2018, Dave released an instrumental piece called "Play", about 22 minutes long, in which he played all the instruments. The music video was accompanied by a documentary. = In February 2020, he participated, along with his daughters, in the 50th anniversary celebrations of the kids show "Sesame Street". = In the city of Warren, Ohio, there is an alley named after him: "David Grohl Alley". = Dave has participated 14 times in the famous show "Saturday Night Live", more than any other musician. = The Foos' were the band that was invited by David Letterman to appear on his last ever show "Late Show with David Letterman", before retiring. = After the burst of the corona virus, Dave found himself very bored in his house . Apparently it was a "trigger" strong enough which pushed the creativity who began to flow into his veins and spill out of his ears. He began to create non-stop in different forms and in different areas, pay attention to the following points... = In the summer of 2020 he responded to the challenge of Nandi Bushell, a 10-year-old drummer, and the two began a drumming battle in sequels that took place on a "battlefield" through the various social medias. The viral event ended up with Nandi taking the stage at one of the Foos' shows. = In 2020 he joined the Jewish producer and multi-instrumentalist Greg Kurstin for a sessions in honor of Hanukkah Jewish holiday , during which 8 songs by Jewish artists were released day after day, in each Hanukkah candle. In 2021 they again collaborated on the Hanukkah project with other songs. = In February 2021, the band released their tenth album "Medicine At Midnight ". = In March 2021 Dave collaborated with Mick Jagger and released with him the song "Eazy Sleazy" in which he plays bass guitar and drums. = In April 2021 Dave decided to share with the world the story of the Red Van, Dave claimed that the red van with which the band initially toured throughout the US is an essential and formative element in the formation of any band. He directed a documentary called "What Drives Us" which review the topic of the Red Van. = In May 2021 the Foo Fighters were inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame!! = For Record Store Day on July 17, 2021, the band decided to bring back the disco to the dance floor and released the album "Hail Satin" under the pseudonym Dee Gees. The band released an album full of covers for the Bee Gees' great songs. = The Corona virus probably did Dave only good, he started posting more things on social media, he created collaborations with artists like the Hanukkah sessions, he started sharing stories from the past and in October 2021 he published his first book. Yes, yes, Dave Grohl has released a book called "Dave Grohl - The Storyteller" , the book gather his lifelong stories with music. = In February 2022 the band's first Hollywood movie called "Studio 666" was released. The film is directed by BJ McDonnell and written by Jeff Buhler and Rebecca Hughes, based on a story written by Dave himself. The film is a horror film in which all the band members and other actors play. = A month after the release of the movie, the album of the imaginary band from the movie "Dream Widow" was released, the entire album was written and recorded by Dave with the help of guitarist Jim Rota who plays the first five songs of the album and keyboardists Oliver Roman and Rami Jaffee. = At that time Dave participated in the famous YouTube show "Hot Ones" where he revealed impressive abilities of eating spicy food. = On March 25, 2022, Taylor was found lifeless in a hotel in Bogotá, where he was supposed to perform with the "Foo Fighters" and he is only 50 years old. Dave loses a bandmate for the second time when this time he loses his closest friend, his soulmate. Dave channeled the immense tragedy, heavy loss and heavy grief into music. He initiated two massive tribute events to his beloved friend. Two shows that took place in Los Angeles and London were held for more than five hours and included huge and historical artists who are friends of the band and especially of Taylor. = In January 2023, along with the New Year's greeting, the band issued a statement that it thanks all its families, friends and fans for their support during the difficult period and, as the band was created to celebrate life and cause happiness, it will continue its activities. Immediately afterwards, dates were announced in which the band would appear with a new drummer, whose identity is currently unknown. = In May 2023 the band revealed its new drummer!! The band released a comical video in which they are seen in a rehearsal room "as if" waiting for their new drummer. A number of famous drummers such as Chad Smith, Tommy Lee and Danny Carey enter the room with ridiculous claims (food delivery, blocked parking, dog shower) and immediately leave, until the camera reveals Josh Freese sitting on the drums all this time waiting for his new friends to start playing. The video continues to a "rehearsal" called "Preparing Music For Concerts" in which the band plays a setlist for the first time in its new line-up. = In June 2023, the band releases its first album after Taylor's death, the album "But Here We Are". The album was produced by Greg Kurstin and the band with Dave recording all the drums parts on the album. This is undoubtedly a lament album, both in terms of sound and lyrics, Dave reflects in the songs the feelings that he and the band experienced following Taylor's death but also what he himself experienced following the death of his mother Virginia. = On September 10, 2024, Dave made an unusual post that deviated from his usual character. It was not typical in its content nor in its publication. He shared, "I have recently become a father of a new baby daughter, born outside of my marriage..." Dave is known for being private about his personal life and rarely shares details. Over the years, he has been perceived as the epitome of a honest and reliable figure in the industry. However, this recent revelation challenges that perception. It is common for us to idealize our heroes, hoping they are flawless but occasionally, they remind us that they are human beings too, just like Dave has done. = In May 2025, after a short period of only two years, the band announces the departure of Josh Freese. Josh shared his deep disappointment (he noted that he had never been fired from any band) on social media and to this day he claims that he does not know why he was fired from the band. Of course, there were many rumors about the potential replacement, but after 4 months and in a very quietly manner, we saw the drummer with the most Israeli name behind the kit, Ilan Rubin. The drummers among us will be interested to know that Ilan has endorsed the "Q" drums brand for years and upon joining the band he switched to a "Gretsch" kit, the brand that Taylor was using. "Face/Off" - Israel's Rock Blog Follow us on Facebook  / Instagram  or Subscribe to our website

On January 18, 1973, "Bad Company" - one of the most esteemed and interesting lineups in Classic Rock, was formed. (Photo: Jim Summaria) It's a supergroup that includes singer Paul Rodgers and drummer Simon Kirke who came from the band "Free", guitarist and singer Mick Ralphs from "Mott the Hoople" and bassist and singer Boz Burrell from "King Crimson". This amazing supergroup was a huge success throughout the 1970s. The band's first three albums, "Bad Company" (1974), "Straight Shooter" (1975) and "Run with the Pack" (1976), reached the top five in the album chart, both in the UK and US. The band has produced memorable anthems during its career such as "Bad Company", "Can't Get Enough", "Good Lovin' Gone Bad", "Feel Like Makin' Love", "Ready for Love", "Shooting Star" and "Rock 'n' Roll Fantasy". In the early '80s, the band took time-of during which Rodgers joined another supergroup - "The Firm" along with Jimmy Page . Paul Rodgers will later join "Queen" and release one studio album and several live albums. At the same time, the band continued to release 6 albums in different lineups without Paul Rodgers . In 1995 the four members of the original "Bad Company" met during the funeral of their manager Peter Grant, who was also "Led Zeppelin" manager. This meeting was the trigger for the band's original lineup reunion, which during the 2000s went on a number of successful tours and released live albums and videos. In honor of the event, we compiled a special playlist of the best songs from the band and of leading lineups of the band members: C lick Here . "Face/Off" - Israel's Rock Blog Follow us on Facebook  / Instagram  or Subscribe to our website

On January 18, 1991, a terrible tragedy occurred during the "AC/DC" performance at Salt Lake City . (Photo: Ultimate Classic Rock) In a performance held at the " Salt Palace ", three spectators were crushed to death when the roaring audience rushed forward toward the stage, right at the opening of the performance. A hall capable of accommodating 13,920 people sold 13,294 tickets, of which about 4,000 tickets were sold with no marked seats, all in the front stage area. At the first notes of the song " Thunderstruck " which opened the show, the audience rushed forward toward the stage, crushing three fans to death on their way: Jimmy Boyd and Curtis Child who were only 14 years old died immediately, while and a 19-year-old Elizabeth Glausi died few days after the incident when parents asked to cut her off from the breathing machine she was connected to after it was clarified that she was in a state of brain death. The band members were not at all aware of the tragedy that took place at the front of the stage. They only became aware of the incident after playing three more songs: " Shoot to Thrill ", " Back in Black " and " Fire Your Guns ". As soon as they learned of the tragedy, Brian Johnson turned to the audience and asked them to take a step back. In a completely unclear move, the band decided to continue playing an entire set of the show, after a short break during which the casualties were evacuated from the hall. The band later suffered harsh criticism. They explained their decision by saying that the security asked them to continue to play to avoid a major riot among the crowd resulting in further casualties. Unfortunately, tragedies like the one that happened in Salt Lake City happened in the past, but no lesson was learned. One of the first known tragedies happened during "The Rolling Stones" performance in California in 1969, where 4 people were dead. Another known tragedy occurred during a live performance of "The Who", held in Cincinnati in 1979, during which 11 fans were killed. Another one happened during the "Woodstock 1999" festival where 3 people were killed. The list of tragedies continues with the "Pearl Jam" show in Denmark in June 2000, where 9 people were crushed to death. And there is the "Korn" performance in Atlanta Georgia where one person lost his life and the "Motorhead" show held in 2010 where also one person was dead. Here in Israel, too, the lesson has not been learned and it's enough to mention the "Arad" tragedy that occurred during the "Mashina" show at the "Arad Festival" held on July 18, 1995, during which 3 young people were killed. Of course, the terrible tragedies that occurred during the "AC/DC" show led to many lawsuits against the band and the organizers, including a lawsuit by the parents of one of the lost children for 8 million Dollars. All claims ended in a settlement out of court. "Face/Off" - Israel's Rock Blog Follow us on Facebook  / Instagram  or Subscribe to our website

He was one of the founders of the "Eagles", one of the best-selling bands in the United States. He is a singer, guitarist, songwriter, producer, and even an actor. Let's read some interesting facts about Glenn Frey. (Photo: Filmmagic) Glenn Frey was born in Detroit on November 6, 1948. Already at the age of five, he began studying music initially on piano and later on guitar, but eventually, he taught himself to play additional instruments even drums. Frey was left-handed but he played guitar right-handed. In high school, he started playing in various bands. The first band he played in was "The Disciples" where he played guitar. Later he moved to another band - "The Subterraneans" where he played drums. In the late 1960s, he moved to Los Angeles, where he befriended other musicians Jackson Browne and J.D. Souther with whom he rented an apartment. Jackson Brown by the way lives on the floor below them. In 1970 he met Don Henley who also moved west from Texas with his band and lived in the apartment of his fellow Texan colleague Kenny Rogers. The two served alongside Randy Meisner and Bernie Leadon as a backing band to country singer Linda Ronstadt. In 1971 during a tour with Linda, the four decided to form the "Eagles". Until the disbandment of the Eagles in the early 1980s, the band released a long line of successful albums and hits and Frey wrote and sang in many of them. Among those associated with him are: "Take It Easy", "Peaceful Easy Feeling", "Tequila Sunrise", "Already Gone", "James Dean", "Lyin 'Eyes", "New Kid in Town" and "Heartache Tonight". In 73-74, Frey had an affair with Joni Mitchell, on which he wrote the songs "Help Me" and "Car on a Hill." After the breakup of The "Eagles" in 1980, Frey embarked on a successful solo career, releasing hits such as "The One You Love", "The Blues of Blues", "The Heat Is On" and "You Belong to the City". Glenn Frey has won 6 Grammy Awards and 5 American Music Awards. He was found dead on January 18, 2016, and is only 67 years old. "Face/Off" - Israel's Rock Blog Follow us on Facebook  / Instagram  or Subscribe to our website

Sometimes he has a cute and even nerdy look but his voice is powerful, loud, and ripping. He was born on January 18, 1971, so let's get to know Jonathan Davis a little better, he has a pretty difficult past: (Photo: Ethan Miller) 1. His full name is Jonathan Howsmon Davis. 2. He is a descendant of parents of German, Scottish, English, and Welsh descent. His father was a keyboardist for Buck Owens and Frank Zappa, among others, and his mother was a professional dancer and actress. 3. His parents divorced when he was 3 years old due to his father's many absences to tour. 4. At that time his parents produced the musical "Jesus Christ Superstar". When he regularly visited the rehearsals he already realized then that his life is going to be around music. 5. He moved in with his mother and started developing Asthma, he suffered from the disease for 7 years when he went in and out of hospitals many times. At age of 5, he had a very severe seizure that almost resulted in his death. 6. In his youth he loved "Duran Duran" and later fell in love with New Wave and Hip Hop. (Photo: Unknown) 7. Davis experienced a lot of suffering in his youth, from his lyrics you can learn a lot about the difficult experiences he went through. There will be some hard points here so be prepared (even we had hard time writing). 8. As a child he was sexually abused by his babysitter who to this day has not been exposed, when he told his parents about it seeking help, they did not believe him and did nothing to stop the suffering. The song "Daddy" from Korn's first album is considered written about his father was actually written about these events. 9. Davis suffered a lot of harassment from his stepfather and at the age of 13 when his stepfather destroyed his drum kit he decided he was moving in with his biological father. 10. But there he did not know that the situation would get worse. His stepmother hated the fact that Davis entered their beloved and beautiful home with his gothic look and strange demeanor. She hated Davis and severely abused him both physically and verbally. One of the most memorable events Davis have is when he was sick she would make him tea and put hot pepper in it to "burn" the disease and he suffered from it badly. He said in several interviews that he did not believe how cruel she could be and how his father did nothing to help him. He wrote the song "Kill You" from the album "Life Is Peachy" about her. (Photo: Brian Ziff) 11. Davis not only suffered from abuse inside his home but also from the outside. In high school, he suffered bullying from other kids because of his outward appearance and shy demeanor. He used to put makeup on his face and wear skirts and long clothes. He said he did not understand why everyone called him gay so he asked for help from his teachers and instead of helping him, they sent him for "conversion" treatment. The song "Faget" from Korn's first album was created from those events. 12. Several times he was asked why he did not leave back to his mother or run away from home and he said he just could not, he could not do it. 13. In most of the years he lived with his father, his stepmother did not let him out of the house much, but as soon as he reached the age of 18, she threw him out of the house. 14. Since his father threw him out of the house and his mother was too far away he went to study at a burial college. Yes, you read that right. He entered this line of job because he thought that way he would get attention, but over time he stayed because it was of great interest to him. He gained a great deal of experience in removing corpses from all sorts of places and was always intrigued by the cause of death. 15. At that time he began to suffer from post-trauma following the preoccupation with death and found consolation in drinking, he began to develop an alcohol addiction that accompanied him for many years. 16. In 1991 he joined the band "SexArt", a punk metal band formed by Dennis Shinn. They recorded six songs but did not release any albums and Davis left the band in 1993. 17. In 1993 at the age of 22 Davis and another guitarist named Brian Welch known as "Head" joined three more friends. Drummer David Silveria, guitarist James Shaffer known as "Munky" and bassist Reginald Arvizu known as "Fieldy". The five formed together a band called "Korn". (Photo: Mick Hutson) 18. We will not review here the history of "Korn" because we will sail to other districts but we will mention a number of interesting things. 19. The name "Korn" started from the word "Corn" but then the friends thought they did not like the meaning and if the C is replaced by a K it will get a different and incomprehensible meaning. 20. You must also have wondered why the "R" in the band name is inverted, so it was created as a "tribute" to the fact that at the time of the band's formation, most of the band members worked on the "Toys R Us" toy store which has the R in the logo inverted. 21. The band began its breakthrough after the independent record company Immortal Records discovered the band at one of the shows and signed them to a contract. 22. The band's first album bearing the band's name was released in October 1994. It reached number one on the Heatseekers Albums charts and received enthusiastic reviews that stated that it had created the New Wave Metal genre and revived Nu-Metal. 23. This album is Davis' favorite album, it made him feel that he is not alone. On the one hand, he was happy that so many people liked and connected to the album but on the other hand, it hurt him that people connect to the pain and that they probably also experiencing difficult things like him. 24. The band's first tour to promote the album was not a great success but in the second round they were chosen together with "Deftones" to warm up Ozzy Osbourne and there they started to create a very large fan base and the album reached gold sales already in the middle of the tour. 25. The band has released 7 albums with the same lineup: Life Is Peachy (1996), Follow the Leader (1998), Issues (1999), Untouchables (2002), Take a Look in the Mirror (2003) and See You on the Other Side (2005). 26. The stand of the Davis microphone, which is shaped like an alien woman and created by the artist Atelier HR Giger, is considered the sixth member of the band and has been with them since 2000. (Photo: Clay Patrick McBride) 27. In the early years of the band they lived like in the "Motley Crue" movie, with a lot of drugs, alcohol, and one big madness. Davis, who consumed a lot of drugs and alcohol, went into a complete frenzy and began to behave in an extreme way when he suffered from symptoms of nervous breakdowns and anxiety attacks. 28. Immediately after their appearance on MTV Unplugged in 2006, which by the way is one of the musical moments that Davis is most proud of. Drummer David Silveria decided to leave the band indefinitely. In 2007 he was replaced by Ray Luzier who is a member of the band to this day. 29. Together they have released 6 more albums: Untitled album (2007), Korn III: Remember Who You Are (2010), The Path of Totality (2011), The Paradigm Shift (2013), The Serenity of Suffering (2016) and "The Nothing" (2019). 30. The album "The Nothing" was very difficult for Davis who had lost his ex-wife and mother a year earlier. These events mentally broke Davis and the album is simply his outlet and therapy with the whole band supporting him and helping him create out of the difficulty, out of "The Nothing". 31. Davis began working on a solo album back in 2007 when he formed the band "Jonathan Davis and the SFA". Although they did not release a studio album, they released two live albums: "Alone I Play" (2007) and "Live at the Union Chapel" (2011). The band disbanded in 2014. 32. Davis also had a small DJ career in which he used the stage name "JDevil" and we even have an Israeli connection... In 2011 he made a media comeback to the DJ stand when he came up as an opening act for "Infected Mushroom's" main show, after also appearing on their song "Smashing the Opponent", from 2009. 33. He would also DJ as an opening act for Korn, Rob Zombie, and Marilyn Manson . 34. Since 1998 Davis has been clean of alcohol (do not ask about drugs because we do not know) and he has not touched a drink since. 35. In the early 2000s Davis began to amass a collection of souvenirs of serial killers, in 2005 he wanted to open a museum with these items but the initiative did not materialize. 36. In 2004 Davis began developing a video game called "Pop Scars" in which musician celebrities fight each other, but the game did not see the light of day. 37. Davis played small roles in two films: "Queen of the Damned" (2002) and "Seeing Other People" (2004). 38. In 2006 he developed Immune Thrombocytopenic Purpura as a result of antibiotics he was taking. This is a disease in which the blood in the body loses its clots. He was forced to stop Korn's tour but he recovered a year later. The songs "Starting Over" and "Hold On" are about the experiences he went through during that time. 39. In May 2018, Davis' first solo album, "Black Labyrinth" was released. 40. Davis married twice, in 1998 to Renee Perez and they had a son Nathan and in 2004 to Deven Davis and they had sons Pirate and Zeppelin. 41. In February 2022, the band released their 14th album "Requiem", you perceive the power and survival, 14 albums. This is one of the biggest bands in the Nu-Metal world that continue with all their power and releases albums and go on big tours!! Listen to Korn's last album "Requiem" on: Spotify , Apple Music "Face/Off" - Israel's Rock Blog Follow us on Facebook  / Instagram  or Subscribe to our website

Written By: Moti Kupfer Release date - 17.01.1974 The year is 1973, and after five consecutive years in which Joni Mitchell made a point of releasing one album per year, she suddenly found herself with breathing space and time to experience life from a shared, intimate perspective, following her meeting that same year with one of the founding members of the "Eagles", Glenn Frey . Mitchell, whose sixth album "Court and Spark" was released on January 17, 1974, was blessed with a wide range of talents. From a young age, she learned to play the ukulele and piano, to compose and perform her own songs, and she also proved herself as a gifted visual artist. However, as her relationship with Glenn Frey grew closer, it became clear that Mitchell had yet another hidden talent in her arsenal. "In 1974, I moved to a place at the corner of Ridpath and Kirkwood in Laurel Canyon, and we had poker games every Monday night during football season,” Frey recalled. “Joni Mitchell got wind of those card games, and she always was a good hang, so she started coming every Monday night and playing cards with us. We’d watch football from six to nine and then play cards until the wee hours” Frey recalled. He said that she amazed everyone in how good she was and then it turned out she was also a poker champion. Beyond the captivating Monday Night Football poker games, Mitchell wrote two songs inspired by her romance with Glenn Frey . One of them, "Help Me" , became one of the biggest hits in her catalog, and together with "Car on a Hill" , it found its place on her sixth album "Court and Spark". Mitchell was born Roberta Joan Anderson in November 1943 in Fort Macleod , Alberta , Canada. At the age of seven, she began playing piano and drawing, and two years later she contracted polio. During her hospitalization, she was told she would not be released before Christmas. As a result, she began singing Christmas carols to herself, and it was there that her first real interest in singing took shape. During her teenage years, Joni taught herself to play the ukulele and guitar and began performing at parties and coffeehouses around her hometown. After finishing high school, she enrolled at the Alberta College of Art and Design, but left after one year and moved to Toronto. In Toronto, she discovered she was pregnant by a former partner, and in February 1965, at the age of twenty-two, she gave birth to a daughter. Several weeks later, she married folk artist Chuck Mitchell. Despite his promise to help raise the child, Joni decided to give her daughter, Kelly Dale Anderson, up for adoption. This decision was kept secret for many years, but it deeply affected Mitchell and later surfaced in several of her songs, most notably "Little Green" , which tells the story of the pregnancy and the adoption. The marriage ended after a year and a half, but she kept the surname Mitchell from that union. It was on a cold night in November 1966 that Joni Mitchell’s career truly began to take shape. Israeli singer Malka Marom Cohen, born in Hungary and Poland and later immigrating to Canada, was driving home from the CBC studios in Toronto, where she had been filming her musical television program with her creative partner Joso Spralja. Exhausted after more than twelve hours of singing, Marom did not drive home as usual. Instead, she drove in circles and eventually stopped at a small club called "Riverboat", There, she watched a young woman of about seventeen standing on stage, repeatedly tuning her guitar strings for long minutes. When the young woman finally began to sing,“I can’t go back there anymore / you know my keys won’t fit the door / you know my thoughts don’t fit the man / they never can,” Marom saw the past, the present, and the impossible future that awaited her. That moment changed her life, eventually leading Marom to divorce her partner. After the show, Marom approached the young woman and said, “what an enormous talent you are! Immense! And what a range, your voice, four octaves, even five - huge range! And the poetry! What a poet you are, as wonderful as Dylan and Leonard Cohen!.. Really, really. You're going to be acclaimed the world over". She asked her name. “Joni Mitchell,” the girl replied. “I’m Malkah,” Marom answered. True to her nature as a woman of action, Marom did not settle for compliments. She brought a record company representative to hear Mitchell at the same damp club, though he lost patience while Mitchell tuned her guitar. Years later, Marom stated she was the first to tell her she would be great. That she had enormous talent. Twenty years later, when Mitchell had already become a legend, a young violinist named Mika Karni happened upon Mitchell’s album " Blue ". Mitchell’s associative writing style and distinctive voice were among the influences that later helped shape Karni’s own musical career. Returning to Marom, legend has it that folk singer Judy Collins was the first to record Mitchell’s songs and turn them into hits. In reality, Marom, then one of the most prominent singers in Canada and a key figure in promoting ethnic and world music alongside Yosso, was the first to perform Mitchell’s songs publicly and repeatedly, determined to sing them until they were known. When Collins eventually took on that role, Marom stepped aside. Soon after, many leading artists began recording Mitchell’s material, including Buffy Sainte-Marie, Dave Van Ronk, and Judy Collins. Mitchell’s luck continued when David Crosby  attended a club performance in Florida and was deeply impressed by her work. He took her to Los Angeles, introduced her to the folk community, and persuaded a record label to work with her on a debut album consisting entirely of acoustic music, without studio arrangements. The result was "Song to a Seagull" , released on "Reprise Records", marking Mitchell’s first album as a folk artist. In August 1969, the Woodstock  festival took place. Mitchell did not attend due to prior commitments, but she was captivated by the stories told to her by her partner at the time, Graham Nash . Inspired by those accounts, she wrote "Woodstock" , a song that received numerous cover versions and reached the top of the UK charts in 1970 in a rendition by "Matthews Southern Comfort". Mitchell’s stature rose even further with the release of her fourth album " Blue " in 1971. After releasing her fifth album "For the Roses" in 1972, she decided to change direction and explore new sounds. She devoted an entire year to writing and recording her next album, "Court and Spark" , which blended folk, pop, and jazz elements. The album explores the roles of honesty and trust within relationships, with one notable exception. The third track, "Free Man in Paris" , focuses on Mitchell’s agent and manager David Geffen. Mitchell and Geffen rose together in the late 1960s. He was establishing himself as a talent agent, while she was building her reputation through her music. They became close friends, and when Geffen founded "Asylum Records", Mitchell recorded her album "For the Roses" for the label. Geffen often spoke with Mitchell about the extraordinary pressures of the music industry, and she wrote the song based on his reflections. The place where Geffen felt most alive and unrestrained was Paris, where no one could reach him with favors or demands. David Crosby  and Graham Nash , close friends of Mitchell and also Geffen’s clients, provided backing vocals on the track. Puerto Rican guitarist and singer José Feliciano, who was recording in a nearby studio, also joined in on guitar. Mitchell, who was part of a wide bohemian social circle in Los Angeles, often found herself witnessing questionable social scenes. One such moment inspired "People’s Parties" , written after she observed a nervous breakdown suffered by Dutch model Apollonia van Ravenstein in the middle of a dinner party, seemingly without reason. It later emerged that Jack Nicholson had been involved with her behind the back of his partner at the time, Anjelica Huston. Extending that idea, Mitchell wrote "The Same Situation" , a song about a reckless Hollywood bachelor who ensnares women hungry for love, unaware that they are falling into the trap of a modern-day Don Juan. The album closes with "Twisted" , the first non-original song to appear on a Joni Mitchell studio album. "Twisted"  is a sung psychoanalysis first recorded by Annie Ross  in 1952. Mitchell underwent major surgery in 1973, an experience that stirred intense emotions and created a personal connection between her and the song. In the year of its release, the album was named Album of the Year by The Village Voice in its annual Pazz & Jop critics’ poll. In 2000, it was ranked at number 116 on Colin Larkin’s "All Time Top 1000 Albums" list. In 2020, it placed at number 110 on "Rolling Stone" magazine’s list of the "500 Greatest Albums of All Time". As further recognition of its lasting impact, the album was inducted into the "Grammy Hall of Fame" in 2004. For Listening : Spotify , Apple Music "Face/Off" - Israel's Rock Blog Follow us on Facebook  / Instagram  or Subscribe to our website