MUS IC ~1 K, 11hTu~rr

ROCK
'N'ROLL
CHAMELEO
H E POPl' L -\.R TRf"-'-0r.; \lt:SI C the unpluggt:d' thing is grtting ridicu-

T these days is to record ..un- k,us. It's likc OK. thcrc~ onc to jump
plugged~--li\c acoustic ~ dut on. b.d:s:. let's all get on th.isone.' So, al
att easy to produtt and a .sMp to ~ - lhoogh the tide "".lS just a ,nischie,.'OuS
lc:rsc.Gningc-acu soch as Nm".IWI and little bit of t.ynicismon rnr part, I thinl.:
d,e Stone Temple Pilou ru,,-.,mio)-.d it fits.""
succus v.-ithmis lonmr..as h:n-c \Ucr:m Edmunds' con<."\.,X t.>rPlut,gtd/,1 had
af'U$t$&ic Cb(){on and Rod Stn-an . more ro do with h.i:sown musit.":11 Stlva-
defunct folk-pop tion than anyt hing
group 10.000 .\bn- 'RE C ORD MAKER ' else. His l;asfalbum,
iaC$. and e1.sy-l is- C/our 10 tbt F/1mu ,
tcning guru Tony DAVE EDM U ND S f.ailcdco c-.1prutt the
Bcnnc:n. \\Ord MS public\ im.1gin:arion
it. Hean and a re- PlUGS IN TO and lin!,"t!"
.rdl in mu-
formed Led Zq,p<- sic-store bins. Jt :also
lin wcJ'c preparing HIS M U SI C AL ROOTS proved to be his
unplugged projects sw.rn song for C3pi-
aswcll. to l Records. Rock
Journcrm1n critic: .\1ark Cole
cocl:.cr Da,'t' Ed- man wrote in the
munds nt, cr ha.s lulling S10-11t Al.btrm
btt.n one to foll(),l Guhk. Surprisingl)',
trends. whi<:'.hper - Clfttr' to tbt Flamt,
haps c:rplains "'' h} never catches fire;
d,e \\ 'clsh musician itS the 6.rst time in
hashad<ucbliout<d 20 years that .Ed
.suca:ssin thC'Ainer- munds h:assound<X I
ican mu kct. H is tired.-
19i I single, t Hm- '"'Thcrc w:asn 't rc-
You Knod:ing, .. tt- :all)' that much in -
m:ainshis onl) fony te.'st on the rt<:'.'Or
d,
in.to the Top 20..The inkctiousrt:uub: -hich 1 "'ill be the 6rtt to :admit,., Ed
of d,e 19;5 Smiley L<-'i< hit peaked21 munds ~pl:ains. ..I had co rccrc,u. re
No. -ton /JiJ!ho,m/"1pop singlesdwts. group. I buil, mr own srudio, :md went
0<,n't fool:for him 10 ,an dungmg e>n :a four-mont h tour with Ringo
now. At 50, Edmunds =ins as indc- Sttrr . \ \'hen I c:amc b:ack..1 reco rded
pcndenr as er. His lid, solo .tbwn. this.tbum.
recorded 21 his home studio in The album itscff is a finely b:11:
mced
$otnhcm C.Jifomis, (>UIS <mpru,sison collection of styl'5 th:n include rocb-
"" ,O'C)ro,o1o.. :-;.,, only ctid he pro- bnly, contcmpor:ary pop, old-&shio ncd
duce ,nd mginttr d,e 11-uxk .tbum. rock 'n' roll, an updated vers io n o f
but he also sanr .11m,-ocals. pis)-..!.ti Khach:arurian~ d:tSSical ..Sabre O~ncc"
the instruments 2nd -.TCtt, ~TOtt or and C\tn :a first-ntc p,.arodyo( Califor-
srnng<d thrtt of d,e songs. nu's bclm-c<Isurt music.
The title o( Edmund's lint album in Edmunds' ,'O<.-:al
dd.i\ 'Cry ,-aric.'Swith
four )'CM'S is Pt-,gol la..and if it sou.nds e,ch song. Indeed. he's :1 si nging
like b>cl:luh to the onplugged &d. d,:amek\ln. $0untling like i\lark Knop-
.-.,u.it jus, aught be. Ocr on the first s.inglc. "'Chutes and
There's a lin1e o( tbal ," Edmunds Laddc~,.. 31ndthen like his good friend
:admits.1 ....,., lhinl:ing of 11,,."me Joe \\'alsh on "'One Step 8:ack.1t O n
cimc. I thought it ~ just comic-.tl.But e...i, Boy Blood (In ~ly \'eins)." the

120 OR."-i'-:'C'ECOAST
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11
arili:t mimics Brian \.Vil.sou on le!id and
duplicatc-.sthe Beach Boy's lush bu
monieson backgroundvoc:tl:s.
That's one or my nui n tale:i.\ts,I\e
THINI<INGOF
EYELIDSURGERY?
11

found," Edmunds I"of hls ability ro

capcure the feeling and style of other
singers. .,Ir's worriodme over the years.
T Jho uld be more unified, doi ng one
th ing. Like 22 Top makes th is noise \
and they do it bcner than anyonc-
they~rcgreat at it. But l jUSthappen co
be drawn t-0 and affectedby many Ulffu..
ences, 1.ud I b;wc such fun doiog it.
'Beach BoyBlood' rook 14 dys, but ii
wu a lot of fun.."'
1"be t.n:ist'searly inffueocesincluded
Chuck U.ny, Bill Haley. E'.lvisPreslc)' HENRYBAYLIS.M.D .
and the E\crl) Brothers. Jl c sttrted WAS CHIEFOf OPHTHALMICPl.ASTIC
SURGERY AT UCLA rOI\ I S YtARS.
playing the guiHr at 13, and within NO COSTCONSULTATION FOR
thr ee years had Cormed his first lnnd. COSMETICSURGl:RY .

----
He played in SC' ''cral rock 1,'TOUpsbefore CALL FOR800 KLtT. ~...-ge,yollhe
~ eyelid$ rek:.ie,. ,agy
gaining notoriety in the mid- t97Us with Oph(l\all'nologlst/llOal d Certllled.1969
Chllm:r meMl>N
the cult quartet. RO<'k.pi le. E.dmunds Ame,ic..,n Soi::~ Op,ffl ,,lml( I01Rmoke-up<Olll!alllely.
ranteddie bmd pa.n..titue.. alternating Aasdc.Md lons.cructlvt:Su,gey 19?0
with bissl5tNick Lo~e. The l"'O musi- 1,,-lld~unbo....-
(714) 700-0700 ~ .skinIncision. techi*1ue
cians com1>lcmentc:deach OtherJ>C.rfea.- Los Atigdes Office (3 10) 207-0300
ly and became btst friends. It was v.tlldl """' plOneered
144 1 A~ A~. Sui~ 7;07, ~ k,.,,ch by 1k Baytls.
Edmu11ds who introduced Lowe:to
Carlene Carter, "'hom lo\\ e C\'enru:all)'
1ruinied. then later di,'Orocd .
Edmunds also introd uced Geo rge ,,.;::,,
(r;,t r~tr.l
- ~ J .7~ 1J ~
Harrison to former ELO leader Jeff Your 011/
y limir is your /magi11a1io11!
Lynne,who .,.. ,em on to produce the ex
Beat le's ste llar Chn1d Nim album. Elegamyarlus a1ailahle world wide

-
Harrison :t.nd Lynne lhen te:.amedwith
Bob Dyt.n. Tom Petty .. .,d Roy Orbi-
- --
son t0 rorm the Tnweling \.\lilburys.
Indccd, Edmunds has been a sort of
catalyst in the mu,iic:indll.,;U')',whctha
' - 41 -
.

he intended 10 be or not. "It's:like lt 'l11

W.JnfI Lift,' he sai of the holiday
dassic about how one man 's life touch-
es so nu.ny others ... Wb:at would have
luppened if I'd ne,er been here? " 'ell,
wh:u e2n you s:i.yabot.ll tlut.? h seems
.so innocent at the time and d1en some.-
one poims h out to you. J've foun d
th::1t lot of good swff hnpJ)(!lUby .1c-
ciden r. \Vhen I'm producing or mak-
ing a rttord ;a lot of things end up be...
ing really nice linle features on the
record."'
F..dmund.'iprobably h::ilsenjoyc d u
much success in studio r ecor d ing
boothsu be has as an artist. Over the
)'tars hc:'sprodut::ed.sueh artists as k.d.

ORAi.
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 MUSIC
l:a.ng, the Stray Cats, OcJ Shannon,
Carlene Carter, Fogh;it.,t.bc Fabulou.s
Thunderbirds :andthe E,erly Brothers.
omong many others.. OJnStq_uentlr, h~
descrihl's himscl( as :i record 111:11.t:r
r:uher th an tlS a l it\ger. lllu~ician or
producer. ..My strength is that my tal-
cnc is noL in one part icular rhing, ei-
ther guita r-playing or singing or (pla)'-
ingJ whare,er insmuncmts.,. he sap . "1
thin k it's in doing it :i!II, and having a
lun <l~-on role in 1he sn)d.io, engineer-
ing :aswcU a.,;producing.
Since hc didn' t ha\'C 1 record deal
when he began rt'C<>rding PluggrdIn,
Edmunds ~s :able: co take as long as
he: needed to record it. Joe \.Valsh
heard a couple of tbc 0'3cks, passed
the m alo ng t:o his management ream,
wh ich in rum made Pyramid Records
.tWilre of the: projc:c:L Buth Edmunds
Md \.'llsh perfonned in Ringo St'.irr's
AII-S1-:irrBancl.
Touring with Slarr challenged
Edmunds, a musician who earne d a
well-deserved reputation for tying one
on duringhisare&ce Rockpile
d,ys.
"h was a bit odd, acru:all),"he ad-
\it:t of hjs nin1 with Starr, a ret.vvcr-
11
ing :alcoholic. 1 underst,rnd whtn
someone hu gotten himi;clf imo th:::u
sort uf prob lem; there\ uJtl)' one way
<ml, the 12--stepprogram. The pi:-ub
1cm is they he.come 2.ddicted 10 (the
program), although it S2\'C lhear Li\cs.
Out we weren't aUowed to smoke on
the pla.nc. f felt like sa)1ng.Hang on,
Ringo.you were:Jording h up for God
knuws huw longt and now when you
crash. everyone's got w? Excuse1rnt',
hut what 2ho u 1 d,e moder.ues he~?' It
was interesting, hut f'm gl:td irs over.
The best thing was listening to Ringo
~,iii .\ d,,.....
i...
~

~rrr
''Chil"llJ!o ~tylc ..
Stcakhou-..c, "JlCt:iali1.in~
in h.JnJ 1,:tn h.ans.b CHy
Bnf. the frc..,hc:<.cof SC'afoud
t),/,~ 11-:Sr,JI
'ITE !;JUI.I. :tn<lt:hup~. \\'c t:ook only m
chc 11.1ci,cmJnncr - ,uwral WtN>d.
", \11 Om,~~lf'Cmm/\' '1,pit! for o(:t'r 13 1rt11-s. "
kc'-Crv.111on.-.
Ra:omm c ndcd
play . On some songs I he11rdhim do
Beatle s riffs- unmi.scakablc Dc11les
drwnmlng.
He\ hoping the publicwill slure ~lat
sentiment with his new album. Now
,hat he's Plggrd /11,he hopt.'S record
buyerswon'ttune uut.
Hits are nire, not just from the:olni-
oos 6.nancial l&tandpoin t}," he says. "It's
fwhenl )'OU h:n-e an ide:i whit.ti is OOn

7H-Zf>l-5h.,i IXJX :\. \bin "ir. In inc,( :.\ firmed by a mi11ionpeople-d u 1's a
gre.it fueling." a:

1U ORANGCOAST- NOVEMBER199-1