Have been a bit reclusive lately but decided to go out and see Chickenfoot do a show.  For those of you who haven't heard of them the band consists of Sammy Hagar and Michael Anthony of Van Halen, Chad Smith from the Chilli Peppers and Guitar Maestro Joe Satriani.  A formidable line up by any standards.   My good friend Wendy set it up for me to go out and shoot the show.  Got talking to Michael Anthony backstage, turned out we had a couple of mutual friends, very nice guy and quite unassuming. 

Great show, wasn't quite sure what to expect musically but each of the guys did what they do best and it gelled big time.  Have to say that Satriani really was impressive.  Michael and Chad Smith hammed it up for a few shots for me which was a nice touch.  The stage was low which was a very welcome thing, the high ones are always a pain for any music photographer as you end up with too many upshots of the artists noses.  Stayed on after the first three songs and shot just about all of the set thanks to Joes manager Mick kindly arranging that one.  Cheers Mick!

They're at the end of the tour almost but if you get a chance to go out and see them play then do it, highly recommended and a great night out.

A few pieces of Chickenfoot....

Had a quick run up the road to San Antonio today.  Only a couple of hours drive, grateful for no flights this time.   Am shooting Mike Dirnt, bassist for Green Day for Fender Guitars.   Being that the heat index is 110 degrees today I am also grateful that the AT&T Center is an indoor venue and that I don't have to fart around outside with myself and an artist dying in the blistering Texas heat. 

Get to the backstage gate and am directed underground and into the belly of the venue which proves extremely convenient as I park the Jeep right behind the backstage load in area.  Meet up with the production manager who has already kindly sorted out a large room backstage for me to do the shoot.   Get the lighting gear loaded in and set up, Mike stops in to introduce himself and we chat a little. Turns out he's a big fan of The Who so he's alright with me for sure.  Go out and watch the sound check, the music isn't really my kind of thing but they certainly know what they're doing.

The photo shoot goes well, Mike turns up in a bright red blazer and brings his Squier and Fender basses.  He's very easy to work with and most cooperative and knows the drill giving me the look that's needed.  Shoot him bursting through a white paper backdrop with his bass first of all and then some high contrast shots of him backed up into the corner of the room.  I got the impression that he knows something about photography as he seemed to know what he was talking about when it came to cameras and various lenses.  It certainly made my job easier that he had an interest in what we were doing and the fact that he picked out all of his favorites for me right there and then saved me a lot of time in the editing process.

Grabbed some dinner in catering and then went out to shoot the show.  Saw my photographer mates Gary and Jay down in the pit, good guys and real hard workers who are at all the shows.   From where I was it looked as though all of the 15,000 seats were taken in the place and it certainly sounded that way.   Mike hammed it up for me and stayed pretty much on my side of the stage getting low to the camera.  Got some great shots of him jumping and caught him mid air as well which I was pretty pleased with considering that the stage lights weren't really burning that bright so early in the show.  Stayed a little while longer and got what I needed and then bailed out of the gig before the masses all piled out and gridlocked the area.   Treated myself to a caffeine laced smoothie on the way home so I could stay awake for the tediously long drive back home through the back country.  Late at night here you've got to watch the road for Coyotes, Wild Pigs (I kid you not) and Deer or you could end up with a rather messy additional hood ornament on your vehicle.  Made it back home and crashed into the ether.

Ladies and Gentlemen.....Mike Dirnt.

Whitesnake here in my hometown today.  Going to head to the show and hang out with the guys and shoot the show.   Talk with Doug Aldrich late morning about doing some pics but the weather is a bit warm at about 110 degrees and really frickin' windy so we decide to nix an outdoor shoot.  He and the guys just aren't used to this kind of heat with humidity.  Head on out to the hotel downtown and hang out with Uriah for a couple of hours before going down to the venue.

Grab some dinner with Chris Frazier in catering and chat with him a little.  A little bit later Lord Coverdale summons me into his dressing room and we get caught up.  Every time i've seen him recently it's been on the fly so it's good to sit down and take time to chat.  Amusingly he asks me "how the hell do you manage the heat here?"  to which I promptly reply "a generous daily application of baby powder to ones undercarriage".  Shoot the guys getting ready and get pics of them in the dressing room doing vocal warm ups with David and then head out front to wait for the show to start.  See my photographer mates Rick and Taylor there in the photo pit.  My friends Vanessa and Melissa are at the show too, they did the San Antonio show last night as well, they are devoted!

By the time the band hits the stage it's more humid than ever and the wind is full at it but the guys put on a valiant show and brave the relentless breeze.  The crowd were a bit tame at this show and it took DC a while longer to get them riled up and singing along but eventually they got with it.  A good show given the circumstances and horrible heat.  Hung out with the guys for a little while after the show and then decided to nix shooting Judas Priest and called it a night.

A few pics from the show.

My 25th birthday today.....yeah right!    I feel older than I actually am but that's probably just all the editing Def Leppard and Man Raze images that I've been immersed in for the last three weeks..  Finally got it all finished though.    Last year on my birthday I woke to a hurricane threat, six inches of water flooding my courtyard and a knackered refrigerator that clapped out during the night so I figure that I'm ahead this time.  Just got the new Iphone 3GS as my Blackberry started in it's death throes the last couple of weeks so I thought I'd treat myself which is something I never do.  Daisy seems fascinated by it for some reason and has been learning along with me....

Spoke to Joe Elliott who wished me a happy birthday etc, it's his 50th in a few days and he's going home for a short break in the tour.   Going out for a quiet meal and am then going home to crack the seal on a new bottle of Aberfeldy. 

Heading home today.  Am on Continental airlines thankfully.  Say a thousand thankyous under my breath that it's not Abuse Airlines today.  Everything goes well and on time, even my luggage makes it all the way home and intact.  Flying is always a crap shoot and most of the airlines have their "moments" but American Airlines certainly get the award for crappy consistency.

Daisy Buttons barely can contain herself when she sees me arrive home, it's a squeak and purrfest.  Good to be back, it'll be nice to be in one place again for a while.

Speak with the hotel manager and set up special access to the 28th floor exterior level to the hotel so I can shoot the guys up there later. The area goes all around the 28th floor and has a fabulous view of downtown Philadelphia. Looking over the edge is quite nauseating so only do it a dozen or so times (DUH!) and make myself feel bloody awful. Never have been good with heights really but when an opportunity to shoot the band up here is available I'm just going to have to put those fears aside. It's bright and sunny today and really quite a sun trap up there even though there's plenty of cloud cover which makes it perfect for the moody look that I have in mind for the final images.

Phil comes up about 40 minutes earlier than everyone else and we do a session just with natural light. Get some great shots of him leaping in the air and with the tall buildngs behind. Kobayashi kindly is the human refelector holder for the session and does a commendable job. The rest of the guys turn up a little later and we get on with the session. Joe makes up and recites a terrible limerick about me and I attempt a feeble one in response....I think we're losing our touch on the dirty limericks. Shoot this time by overpowering the light and get that tough moody look I was going for. It's been over two years since their last publicity photos were made so they were definitely ready for an update. Get wrapped on the band and Joe and Viv stick around for some solo shots as Rick videos the proceedings. Nicely done session overall and done in a brief twenty minutes which is firmly a band pleaser.

As we leave on the bus to the venue the Ebayers swarm around the guys as they get on wanting them to sign numerous items. Grab some lunch when we get to the venue, the veggie food they have catered is excellent and I trough out with Shepherds Pie and Veggie Burgers. Rick Nielsen from Cheap Trick stops in the dressing room to see Viv and introduces himself, funny bloke and a nice dry sense of humor....like him already. See Ricki Rockett and stop for a chat with him and then have a mooch around shooting the crew working etc. Viv wants to do photos with some of his different guitars so he gets himself powdered and spruced up and with the help of Wolfie the Wonder Tech who's teching Viv's guitars and running video of the proceedings we head outside to find a suitable place to shoot Viv. This is backstage, Camden New Jersey and there are no suitable places to shoot Viv so we make use of the big red and very nosiy 18 Wheelers that are lined up in the parking lot. Viv changes out several guitars and I get him in front of the truck and tour buses as Wolfie makes a taunting and funny narration to the video he's shooting..... Finish off with Viv and get on the back of one of the trucks between the cab and trailer him between with his Les Paul as customized by Leslie. Grab a few shots of Leslie and Wolfie putting some lurve on Viv who of course laps it up! Backstage I meet Danny Bonaduce who has come by to see Joe, interesting guy to talk to, just like he seems on tv. He's back living in Philly from where he has his syndicated radio show.

Great opening night, Cheap Trick are flawless, Poison have some sound issues and the Lepps go off without a hitch. One of the highlights of the evening was some chick jumping up on the runway and doing her little stripper strut around Joe. Pilgrim ran onstage looking ill at what had just happened but Joe told him to let her stay on and do her thing.... got some good shots of it too that might make the light of day sometime. Get some dinner after the show and finally get to relax a while and just shoot the breeze. Everyone heads back to the hotel and when I get back Joe calls the room to say see ya. I'm heading back home to Texas tomorrow to get stuck into all the photos so I turn in for the night, it's been a great a very full and busy one this time but worth it.

Rehearsals today just over the river at the glamorous Camden New Jersey venue.  That's not until the afternoon though so I head out to find........yes, a Starbucks to get me a poofy Peppermint Latte.  I open the door for a lady coming out, she says thank you and I say "you're welcome m'am" and she looks at me like i'm from another planet!  The lad at the counter laughs and asks if i'm from the South.  I ask him what's up and he tells me it throws folks off when you're "that polite"...... Christ!...the mind boggles.   Have a mooch around downtown Philly a little, some really beautiful old buildings here, old for America anyway and I don't mean that in a disrespectful way before anyone get theirs knickers in a wad I just mean that they're old buildings considering most are built to last 20 to 30 years and then knocked down and replaced.  Just good to see nice architecture for a change.

Back at the hotel there are a bunch of so called fans waiting outside one of the side entrances.  They're actually a bunch of E-Bayers with multiple pieces of identical merchandise and guitar plates wanting them signed so they can sell them on Ebay..   little annoying as they give the real fans a bad name.  Get to the venue later in the early afternoon and the great crew have set all the backstage area up.  Grab a bite to eat and dust of the cameras and start doing my thing.  I always like to make sure that I get shots of the whole Def Lep road crew as they're the reason that it all can happen and everyone on the crew are so cool and easy to work with.  It makes the job great fun and so much more fluid.

As usual the guys pretty much seamlessly run through the set doing their thing, flipping me off and mouthing kind gestures.  Rick burns sage before rehearsals and shows and the pleasant aroma fills the air.  It's supposed to cleanse the area of bad spirits but personally I think it's a mask for all the Indian food we've eaten recently.  Get back to the hotel later and rest for a few hours before heading down to the bar for a drink with Sav and Malvin. 

We all fly up to Philadelphia today for a couple of days before the tour kicks off just over the river from lovely Camden, New Jersey. Not a bad flight and fairly smooth all the way.  Today is Fathers Day and everyone seems to be sending and receiving texts, emails etc  and from their Dads and making plans and such...... this all makes me quite melancholy and a bit upset by the whole thing.  Thought I'd done well sticking my head in the sand about it all today...  Oh well....

Get checked into the hotel in downtown Philly.  Get a lovely room on the 27th floor with a great view of downtown and the old Philadelphia National Bank buliding which gives me an idea about shooting the band up high somewhere with the city in the background.....hmmm.   Head downstairs and situate myself in in a cozy corner and order some food and a drink as i go over images on the laptop.  Keep thinking of Audrey Hepburn for some reason....  Need to cut back on the cheese.

Get up early and go for breakfast with Phil and then head out for more Starbucks.  I only actually drink coffee when I'm away from home for some reason.  To me tea doesn't taste the same other than at home so I stay off it.   Well, that and I can't really get Yorkshire Tea wherever I go.   It's "a bit poofy" as I was once told by Joe but I really enjoy a Starbucks Peppermint Latte...  Head back to the hotel and get a quick workout in, make some calls and then get stuck into some editing of photos.   After a few hours of making my eyes bleed staring at a laptop I have a quick dust down and meet Mr Collen in the lobby where we're whisked off to a popular Nashville book store where Lorelei Shellist is doing a signing of her memoir book "Runway Runaway".  Lorelei was engaged to the late Steve Clark and her book recounts her life as a runaway joining the fashion world as a model and the her meeting and falling in love with Steve Clark.  Anyway, Phil was making a special appearance being that he and Lorelei are friends and of course Steve was his best friend.  They had a great turnout for the book signing and Lorelei read a few different chapters before a little question and answer session.  Phil got a great response when he made his appearance.  I moved around with a video camera and got some B Roll for Lorelei.  There was quite  along line for autographs and photos afterwards and I was pleasantly surprised when a very nice fan asked me to sign her "Shots From The Sparkle Tour" book.  A great afternoon.

Get back to the hotel and kick back for a while before heading out with Phil for an Indian......really hot food tonight but great.  Later on we head out to the Grand Old Opry as we've been invited by Alison Krauss to come out and see her perform.  This is not your normal kind of show for us rock folk but I have to say that it was an awesome experience and I can't recall hearing a female vocalist more flawless than Alison and her band are first class musicians.  Truly a treat.  We went backstage to visit afterwards and hung out for a while with everyone.  Very different vibe to rock shows but refreshing.

Great day!

Day 2 of rehearsals and I'm doing a photo shoot with the guys.  The heat index is way over a hundred and it's just plain miserable...  Still, one must soldier on as they say and keep a stiff upper lip.  That's one of the good things about working with fellow Brits.....no whining and a stiff upper lip.  I head down to the rehearsal facility early and get the lighting and everything set up.  Phil's son Rory is working on the crew and helps me out with setting up and Nate models for my test shots against the white backdrop for the indoor shots.

We're scheduled for a 12:30pm shoot but it ends up being a 1:45 deal instead after everyone gets hair, make up and wardrobe done with the help of the lovely Gina and Leslie.  I keep using the "Herding Kittens" phrase but that's what it's like trying to get Def Leppard all in the same place at the same time.. One needs a big stick and a loud commanding voice of which I have neither but I somehow manage to corral them onto the spot.   The indoor shoot goes good although it's quicker than we would have liked due to the heat.  We kept stopping to dab down the guys as is was so humid but came away with some good shots.  Get done with that and I send them off for a break into the air conditioning while I move the lights outside to a location at the side of the building.  The idea is to shoot them around these old junk trucks standing in the long grass.  Check the area for snakes (I'm not kidding) and it's thankfully clear and get the lights set up.  Some of the local crew act as my Leppard stand in's as I do some test shots making sure the exposure is right.  Head off and herd kittens once again.  By the time we get them out there the sun is directly overhead and brutal, no whining though.  Lots of cold water on hand with Leslie and Gina to keep the guys powdered and dry and we're done in ten minutes.  The rest of the guys head in and Joe hangs around and we get some solo shots of him in front of a big old steel truck. 

Next up are Sav and Phil.  We do a quick shoot for Jackson guitars which has been over a year in setting up and funnily enough only takes five minutes to do.  Phil sticks around and we get solo shots of him standing on the hood of an old pickup truck with his new Dread custom Jackson, of course Phil doesn't mind the heat being a sun lover and he gets to top up his tan in the process so it's a win win.  Gina graciously takes some video of the shoot for us.

After we wrap the shoot they do a full run through the set again.  Taylor Swift and her band and family are here to visit and see the rehearsal and hang out for a couple of hours.  The heat is really up in the place now with all the lights and gear running.  They've added two new video screens in front of the left and right amp stacks that are in sync with the main backdrop one and it adds a great new dynamic to the show.  By the time they wrap up later on everyone is pretty much knackered from the heat.  Dinner is delivered and then everyone heads back to the hotel.  Meet Phil in the hotel bar and go over the photo shoot pics for the day.