Photo (C) Karen 'Gilly' Laney

Roxy Music frontman Bryan Ferry married Amanda Sheppard in a romantic island ceremony earlier this week. Sheppard who is much younger than Ferry has been dating the singer since 2008. Love is the drug, right?

Weird and Gilly wish the newlyweds the absolute best. While we’re at it we’d like to share a few photos from Ferry’s last stop in Cleveland in 2011 during the ‘Olympia’ tour. You can view them in the photo gallery.

Ferry was especially kind to pose for us behind the building after the show. Here it is ~ “for your pleasure.”

David Bowie turns 65 today and we wish him a very happy birthday and a year full of life’s richest blessings. Weird and Gilly celebrate a 24th Anniversary today. 24 years of creating together.  We’ve been listening together and laughing together a lot longer than that but that’s another story. Until we can tell it, crank it up and “let yourself go.” Cheers to the person that created this graphic – (unknown) and a much larger cheer to YOU.

Now, go CELEBRATE!!!

youTube

David Bowie 1973 ‘Top Of The Pops’ anyone?  So ~ like you, we kept hearing about the possible T.O.T. P. ‘Jean Genie broadcast on Dec. 21, 2011 but just about the time we settled with the notion of having to wait,  BBC2 aired it as part of their Christmas special. Almost immediately, posting after posting started to appear on youTube and it felt like the entire planet was tuning in.

Bowie and The Spiders From Mars are caught here, in their absolute prime and the delivery of this video, 38 years later and the week of Christmas ~ kicked our spirits into overdrive.  Read part 1 of the story here and the follow up here for the complete story  but the video you’ll find posted below. Lean back and get ready to time-travel: UK 1973. “Let Yourself Go!!”

Watch David Bowie and The Spiders  Perform Jean Genie

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John Roberts the performer and comedian who has gained an audience by doing humorous and original character work live across the country and on television has hit a home-run with this end of year classic.

Most of us can identify with the ‘Last Year Next Year This Year New Year’ attitude that Roberts taps into and who doesn’t have a friend like Harry (Fran)? Come end of year, one can only hope that the new year will be awesome and who better to share in that sentiment than a good friend like Fran?

As the two BFF’s smirk and cheat by eating chips and chocolate, struggling to find Dick Clark on the tube before the ball drops, it’s only natural that one of them passes out. Harry on the other hand takes her bow in the kitchen sink and rebounds with enough time to grab another Apple-tini and watch the ball drop by her lonesome.The morning after is to die for (quite literally) and reality quickly sets in. Still, imagine sharing the last night of the year with Deborah Harry and that my friend, is well worth toasting to. A big thanks to Rocky and Leslie for turning us on to this.

Watch Harry in ‘Last Year Next Year This Year New Year video:

What a fabulous year!! Less postings than ever but that’s because we’ve been rocking out, traveling, working new jobs, hanging out with family, making new friends, seeing old friends and overall,  Weird and Gilly have been ”jammin’ good” the entire year.  Thank God for good folks like yourself who pop in and keep us going, we couldn’t do this without you. So, as one eye looks back fondly, the other one is focused on the future and we anticipate a bright and glamorous 2012 – together. Wishing all of you the absolute best year of your lives!!!

Photo (c) Karen 'Gilly' Laney

So, 25 years to the day after first seeing/meeting Ian Hunter, our anniversary of that epic event couldn’t of been any more perfect. A line stretched around the Beachland in Cleveland, Ohio as many folks buzzed about hoping to obtain a ticket, some lucked out, others we hear, did not. One thing is for certain, Hunter brings out the old school who rarely leave their house, except for when he’s in town. Reminiscing with old friends (some traveled for miles) is half the fun of seeing Hunter in Cleveland and his fans are beyond loyal so it’s something we’ve come to expect but we never take for granted. Hunter’s fans are the best. Some nice video footage has surfaced which we’ve obtained permission to upload here, so return soon to see some live action from this memorable night in Cleveland.

Meanwhile you can read my full account of the concert here and please bare with us while we correct the glitches in the weirdandgilly.com photo gallery.  Going forward, we hope to blog more often and share with you some fantastic photos; some new and some from the archives. Typical WaG, slow but sure.

Lastly, we’re thrilled to report that Hunter will return to the studio on Jan. 9, 2012 and we look forward to the new “rocking” record. More on that and  ’The Ballad Of Mott The Hoople’ documentary will soon follow. Until then, we’ll go on record to say that this show at the Beachland with the Rant band was one of the best performances we’ve seen from Hunter in years.
Anything but just another night.

beachlandballroom.com

Ian Hunter and his band will play the Beachland Ballroom in Cleveland, OH on Friday, Oct.28 and frankly we can’t wait. This will be a very special night for multiple reasons. Firstly, it’s been a few years (Mott The Hoople, London 2009) since we’ve seen Ian and his visits to Cleveland are always extra special.

Though his latest release ‘Man Overboard‘ came out in 2009 we suspect we’ll have the good fortune of hearing a few of those songs, as he hasn’t been here to support that album yet. Clearly, whatever Ian and the band decided to perform it’ll surely be well received. “He’s a rocker and WE are too!”

In addition the night will be billed as a tribute to Ian’s friend and former manager, Steve Popovich from Cleveland International. We thought a lot of Popovich and want to thank the Beachland Ballroom in advance for pulling this together. Joe Grushecky & The Houserockers will open (another artist managed by Cleveland International) the gig which will be an added bonus.

Last but not least, this will be a milestone of sorts for Weird and Gilly as it will mark the 25th anniversary of our very first Ian Hunter concert in Canton, OH. On the 28th of Oct. 1986 Ian Hunter and the Roy Young Band played Trippers Night Club and we couldn’t of been more excited. Youthful, glittered and wide-eyed, we hung on to his every note while keeping our positions, front and center stage.

After the concert,  we waited for about an hour by the back door before we were escorted in, sans any credentials. We were huge fans and in those days, that was good enough. Ian was very kind to put up with us (then and now) and it was a night we’ve often talked about since. When I (Gilly) realized that Ian’s return to Cleveland 2011 would be on the very same night that we met all those years ago, I contacted Weird and we shared a laugh in the name of strange coincidence and the pure magic of glam.

We’re really thankful for all the years, for the music, for the shows, for our time with Popovich and the people we’ve come to know through our love of Ian Hunter. Best wishes to Hunter and the band as they continue to tour. We look forward to your arrival in Cleveland.

michaelmonroe.com

Former Hanoi Rocks frontman Michael Monroe has just released a new record titled  ‘Sensory Overdrive’ and he and his all-star band are out on the road now.

Guitarists Steve Conte (New York Dolls), Dregen (Backyard Babies/Helicopters), bassist Sami Yaffa (Hanoi Rocks, New York Dolls) and drummer Karl Rockfist (Danzig) are currently trekking across the USA. The band will perform at Peabody’s in Cleveland, Ohio on Oct.7 and after all these years, we’re more than ready. ‘Welcome To The Club!’

Mott The Hoople fans may recall the production work that MTH bassist Overand Watts and drummer Dale ‘Buffin’ Griffin did with Hanoi Rocks on ‘Back To Mystery City’ and ‘All Those Wasted Years.’

Others may remember Ian Hunter collaborating with Monroe on his 1989 solo album called ‘Not Fakin’ It’ which was one of the best records released that year. Song two on that album is a prize to hear live;  it’s in-your-face, straightforward rock ’n’ roll. Does anyone remember Hunter/Ronson performing ‘While You Were Lookin’ At Me’ on tour during the late ‘80s? Good times!

Moving forward, Michael Monroe and company appear to be having a real good time in the here and now, so pick up the record and check out their live show. You know what they say, it’s – ‘Dead, Jail Or Rock ‘N’ Roll.’ As for Weird and Gilly, we choose the latter.

Watch The Official Video For Michael Monroe ’78′

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b0R68LBeQ3U

Keep Marc In Your Heart

Marc Bolan died 34 years ago today and we’re still mourning the loss of one of Britain’s finest entertainers.

First and foremost, Marc was a poet, a man of words, a man of music. He remains an underrated guitarist and could stomp across a stage like none other. A fan of Tolkien, automobiles, Bob Dylan and black cats, Bolan could conjure up more magic in three chords and three words than any other wizard we know. He was a sweetheart to the lovely Gloria Jones and the father of the talented Rolan Bolan. His band T-Rex will long be remembered for selling a gazillion records, creating the fan fervor T-Rextasy and near the end of his life, he even had his own television show. His influence is immeasurable, his star power mammoth and at the end of the day, he’s still our teenage dream.

So today, wear a little glitter, put on your babyjane shoes and pink satin trousers and play some T-Rex. Oh, and as always ~ keep a little Marc in your heart.

The link below details some of the acts and notable projects Popovich took on in his lifetime and it’s impressive to say the least. Here, we just want to note a few thoughts and express our deepest sympathy to Popovich’s family and friends.

Steve Popovich played an integral part in the Ian Hunter and Mick Ronson story and played a very important role in our lives as we were writing Ronson’s biography. I can remember Weird and I visiting him on countless occasions at his office above the Cleveland Agora and leaving there feeling encouraged and empowered by his infectious attitude about music. He often visited us at our record store in Parma raving about his latest music discoveries and kept in touch with us long after he left the Cleveland area. Steve was hardcore and he always seemed to be at the right place at the right time. I was absolutely thrilled to run into him at the Charlie Louvin show at the Beachland Ballroom a few years ago and even happier still to know he made it to the Mott The Hoople reunion gigs in October of 2009 in London. We last spoke on the phone about eight months ago and even then he was quizzing me about retail sales, the industry, local and national music. The guy ate, drank and slept it and he truly was, one of a kind.

Steve Popovich you will forever be missed but your spirit will rock on, here in Cleveland and around the world. Rest in Peace Popo ~ we love ya.

Gilly

Steve Popovich | cleveland.com