December 11, 2004

Interview with Howie Simon

To have a great rock and roll band you need a great guitarist, so to look at the bands a guitarists has played in seems to be a good measure of their talent. Ken Tamplin, Jeff Scott Soto, Graham Bonnet, I would say someone would have to have some pretty serious skills with the strings to keep pace with these big names! Our guest today is guitar great Howie Simon who has appeared with all of these names and has his sites set on a bright future.

Howie is a true guitar player, he had a dream as a young man and has fulfilled it, but has never stopped dreaming and he is in my mind a true icon of Rock and Roll. I hope you enjoy the interview and stop into http://www.howiesimon.com/ for news about his many projects … including his first solo CD!!

1. While many of us fans own albums with you as the guitar player; I believe that now is a great chance to get to know you better, would you start out the interview with an introduction of yourself, Howie Simon, the man behind the music?
Most stuff you would want to know about me can be found on my web page at www.HowieSimon.com . Check the BIO page. I have been playing guitar since the age of 6 and I moved to Los Angeles from Buffalo in early 1994. I have done a lot of traveling and played on some great cds these last few years so I consider myself pretty lucky.

2. You are an accomplished guitar player with a long history of album credits and a reputation that spans the entire music scene, so of course what we are all interested in finding out … What are you up to these days?
Well, I just returned home from the Jeff Scott Soto LOST IN THE TRANSLATION World Tour that covered 10 countries in a period of 2 months. The LITT cd was released just at the start of the tour and has been getting really good reviews so far. On a short break in the middle of all that I did a one off gig here in L.A. with Graham Bonnet (Rainbow, Alcatrazz, MSG, etc.) and have been discussing possibly recording a cd with Graham next year. Also, I am in the very early planning stages of recording my very 1st solo cd. I don't know how long the entire project will take, but I hope to have it done and released by the end of next year if not sooner.

3. I would also like to ask what is on the horizon for you. Are there some unfinished songs from the past you would like to return to or a special project that you haven’t had a chance to develop? And while we’re at it lets get your dream band for the record, what artists would you like to work with to create your masterpiece?
As I mentioned earlier my solo cd. It will have a few older songs on it that I never got to record properly as well as new material I have been working on. I will sing on most of it and I hope to have just a couple of guest appearances on there as well.

Also - there will be a Talisman 2 DVD retrospective released in the coming year that I participated in. It will feature 3 live performances we did in 2003 as well as older stuff. I've seen some of the raw footage that my buddy Gary Schutt has been editing and it looks amazing. This is what Talisman fans have definitely been waiting for.

Man, there are so many artists I'd like to work with I don't know where to even begin. One of my favorite singers is a very little know bluegrass guy named John Cowan. I'd love to write some heavy stuff for him to belt out since he has one of the best voices I've ever heard. Most people who know me know that I'm way into Glenn Hughes and always wanted to work with
him. We appear together on the track "I Want To Take You Higher" on JSS's Prism cd, but we didn't play our parts at the same time so that doesn't really count. I've also always wanted to play with Ronnie James Dio and David Coverdale. Either of those would be a dream gig.

4. In looking over your biography and discography it seems you have a bit of the Midas Touch, you have been very successful! What would you say is the reason you were able take a dream and make it a reality?
I've always prided myself on the fact that I come prepared for whatever people ask of me. Unfortunately, many musicians are flakey by nature, but I always show up on time and ready to go in every situation. My good looks don't hurt either! (kidding)

5. The visitors to this site are loyal AOR/melodic rock listeners and as such are huge fans of two of the artists you have worked the most with, Ken Tamplin and Jeff Scott Soto, what has it been like working with these two big names?
Ken and I started with a working relationship and then became friends whereas Jeff and I were friends first and then started working together. Ken is a studio guru and gets some of the most pro sounds I've ever heard come out of his living room! Jeff is one of the best frontmen in rock and can command a crowd of 5 or 5000. And yes, we've played to both! They are both consummate professionals and are very dedicated to their craft. I am also lucky that I get to work with one of my all-time heroes Graham Bonnet. I'm proud to call him a friend and hopefully we will get to work together in a recording situation and create something totally kick-ass.

6. I believe that both JSS and Tamplin are both spiritual people but in different ways, what are the differences and similarities in working on each project?
Ha - They are both very hyper and high-strung but in their own unique way. Ken is extremely note by note meticulous and can be very anal about getting everything spot on perfect. We usually butt heads in the studio, but everything he does is for the best outcome of the track. Jeff, on the other hand, doesn't give a shit about anything! No, I'm kidding, but he would rather have the vibe of everything be cool even if some of the notes or execution isn't perfect. They are both great in the fact that usually I have the freedom to play what I want in the studio and in a live situation they both rely on me to make sure everything in the band is going right … Almost like a musical director.

7. These two artists are part of your career but certainly not all of it; you are a sought after session player, guitar instructor and of course have your own band Alcoholica, how do you keep your momentum going and what activities do you enjoy to balance out your life?
The truth is I really don't know how to do anything else! My goal was always to support myself with my guitar, and the fact that I'm doing that is what keeps me going. As far as other activities, I play basketball and spend time with my dog. I also love watching my Buffalo Bills football team get their asses beat every week!

8. Alcoholica, your Metallica tribute band, has been heralded as the best, would you take a moment to share the story of Alcoholica; the inspiration, the history and the significance this project holds for you?
I don't know who said we were the best, but I think we always did a really good job playing the tunes. There are a few other great Metallica tribute bands out there. The inspiration for that band was simply money. I started the band with 3 good friends in the middle of the 1990's. The tribute scene was just starting to take off here in L.A. and I tried to think of a major band that didn't have a tribute in this area. Metallica was the answer. We actually got to tour the U.S. with Limp Bizkit and Cypress Hill and have been mentioned in Playboy and Rolling Stone magazines, so that's not too shabby. I pride myself most on the fact that even through all the
arguments, disagreements, and whatever else got thrown at us, it was still always only the original four members of that band. Maybe someday we will resurrect it.who knows.

9. Each artist I interview shows me something new about the industry, you have shown me that there is fun to be had and that with some work and some luck anything is possible, what advice do you have to offer to those artists who are just starting out?
I could give you the "follow your dreams" or "stick with your goals and you'll make it, kid" clichés, but I really don't subscribe to that. You had better know what you are getting yourself into, because there is a lot of bullshit to wade through in this business, and you better be able to handle it. It may sound harsh but it's the truth. And you also better be able to handle the truth.

10. With your experience in the industry I would be interested to hear your prediction for the AOR scene over the coming years and what you are looking forward to the most?
It's cool to see a lot of the bands I grew up on still out there and going at it. TNT's latest cd is smokin' and I really like last year's Krokus disc. Whitesnake is still out touring and I was psyched to see Y&T last year, and even Tyketto just did a reunion tour. As long as the internet is
around and there are cool sites like yours and melodicrock.com, the scene will continue to thrive. It may not come back like it was 15 or 20 years ago when rock was a "lifestyle", but the true diehards keep it alive and going and that's a positive thing. However, I'm most looking forward to Ronnie James Dio calling me when he runs out of other guys to use!

11. To close out the interview I would like to open up the floor to you, to speak your mind on any issues you would like to comment on and send a message to the fans around the world…
I wanted to thank all the people who came out and supported us on the JSS tour, especially the ones who traveled FROM far away places or traveled TO far away places just to watch us play. So please keep checking my website at www.HowieSimon.com as I will give updates about my solo cd, any JSS or Graham Bonnet developments, the upcoming Talisman DVD, and whatever else is going on. Thanks for the opportunity to do this interview!

Posted by Kathy at December 11, 2004 12:02 AM