Sunday, March 25, 2012 

How NOT To Direct A Show | Ginger Baker Guest Artist

I just discovered a long-lost out take from the pilot version of The Rock & Roll Kitchen, shot in Los Angeles long ago. FYI, I do not possess any of the original footage, which is another issue altogether...


It somewhat echoes a recent interview by the band leader of the just-terminated trainwreck Rosie O'Donnell Show on Oprah's Network: "I know what NOT to do."


The clip features legendary drummer Ginger Baker, ex-bandmate of Eric Clapton with both Cream and Blind Faith. He made English Pancakes, and I remember 3 things about him:


1. When I asked what he might say if I'd met him in the 60s, and told him he would be doing a cooking show in the 90s, he said: "I wouldn't have remembered."


2. He kept saying to the tall kitchen assistant with the rockin bod: "Give us a kiss, love."


3. He insisted on using an "al - u - minium pan"


But on the down side, what this clip confirms is something I knew was happening when it happened: Very bad direction. 


Since shooting that clip, I've been in front of the camera almost too many times to remember, including national TV spots, special events for major corporations, webisodes, music clips, etc. And I've also produced many many segments, interviewed people, etc. And if there's one thing I know: If the talent is doing well while the red light is on... DON'T STOP THEM!!!! Which is what you can clearly see happened with just this little clip. 

I'm delivering the line just fine and then... STOP. WTF?!?!?! Talk about killing momentum & building frustration, especially when the talent (me) was already incredibly nervous and stressed out about the whole experience (i.e., no rehearsals, uneasy about the creative direction, incredibly difficult guest interviews with Ginger Baker & Brian Wilson, etc.)

But in a weird way, I suppose you could look at it as confirming something I already knew - which means knowing what not to do.
 

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Wednesday, December 10, 2008 

The Mighty Tower Of Power Horns

Anybody out there (under 40) heard of the Tower Of Power Horns? Although there's certainly lots of younger fans who may really appreciate a great horn section, or don't buy into all the corporate radio crapola (there IS hope for music!), I think it's fair to say TOP had their heyday well before the 1990's. So why am I writing about them? Well, their horn section played on a song of mine once, called "Let's Turn Up The Fire."
The Tower of Power
That, plus I just got an email from someone saying they're working on updating the TOP discography for their website, and he's interested in getting a VHS or DVD of their performance of my song on camera. I'm honestly a little tickled - I get inclusion on their vast, legendary list of tracks? Sweet...

Truth is, they played on more than just my song; they also backed up Brian Wilson of the Beach Boys on a song called "The Spirit Of Rock & Roll," plus some other cover tunes. Well, I guess that makes sense, as they were part of the house band for my Rock & Roll Kitchen TV pilot, and they played whatever was asked of them. One hell of a cover band, eh?

Unfortunately, there's a little more to this story regarding the video masters, which I'll get into later. For now, I'll just enjoy the little glow of being included with some truly great artists (does that make me one, too? Pretty please?!?!?!)

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Monday, April 16, 2007 

The Rock & Roll Kitchen | Teaser For Pilot

I’ve been converting some old VHS tapes lately to digital, and have started digging into some footage that's a big part of my past (no, it's not porn).

For whatever reason, I didn’t think about posting content from my “pilot” episode of RR Kitchen until I read recently that Brian Wilson’s old shrink (Eugene Landy) had kicked the bucket last year. As both Landy and Brian Wilson are part of the forementioned past, it occurred to me: Why not put some of my stuff online?

Anyway, it’s been a real long time since I’ve looked at this footage, and I have to admit it’s bittersweet to see it again. Time & distance are two powerful forces; they’re not necessarily your friends, but they do at least offer you one last cigarette as you realize the feelings you had at one time have circled the drain, leaving you with little more than cold perspective (okay, I admit it - this stuff got me worked up all over again). FYI, as a little hint of what you'll hear about on this whole experience: you may notice how the piece hardly even touches on the creator and owner, the whole reason the thing even existed...

And so, I realize I have a lot to show & tell about the experience, which was my last hurrah after giving it a go for 5 years in Los Angeles. But for now, I'm putting up what it all got boiled down to after two shoot days and $75k spent - a short teaser clip. The clip does feature some great musicians, including Brian Wilson (Beach Boys), Ginger Baker (Cream), Tower Of Power Horns, Jim Keltner, Lee Sklar, Mike Finnegan, Mark Andes and - much more on this guy later - Scott Page (Pink Floyd). Oh, and the theme song that killer band is jamming on is called "Let's Turn Up The Fire" - a tune I wrote for the show.


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