MEDIA
Preview
By CHRIs BURGEss, CHRIs kIEs AnD JoRDAn WAGnER
Books
Full Metal Jackie Certified: The
50 Most Influential Heavy Metal
Songs of the ‘80s
By Jackie Kajzer and Roger Lotring
You would never think that Megadeth’s anthem
“Peace Sells, But Who’s Buying” came from the
non-metal monthly
Reader’s Digest
or Vernon Reid’s
guitar riff on “Cult
of Personality”
resulted from his
inability to mimic
Corey Glover’s
vocal patterns, but
these stories and
others in Full Metal
Jackie Certified
show sometimes inspiration strikes artists at
the weirdest times and from peculiar sources.
Authors Jackie Kajzer—known better in metal
radio circles as “Full Metal Jackie”—and Robert
Roger Lotring collect insight straight from the
rockers about the creative process and backstory
behind some of the most influential metal songs
of the ‘80s. While the literary formula of tourbus
recollections and wild stories were great years
ago, the telltale difference in this book is in the
thorough and detailed execution.
First, they are forthright on the intention of this
book. It’s about the influence of the lyrics of
these songs from the ’80s heavy metal genre.
It’s not just another legacy list for the ages. With
their mission clearly defined, they easily peel
away the excess fat of hair metal and Sunset
Strip rock found in the ’80s and get to the meat
of the debate—the messages and meanings
behind our favorite metal songs. Secondly, the
narratives go well beyond the redundant stories
and anecdotes. They include thoughts from the
heavy metal artists and songwriters about the
cultural and social impact these songs had when
spandex was cool. They complement that original info with newly acquired and fresh insight
from those same artists on the continued validity and power these songs still hold today. And
thirdly, the book dives deep into each song’s
musical composition. From Ozzy Osbourne’s
bassist Bob Daisley remembering how one of
Randy Rhoad’s effects pedals sounded like
a chugging train—even when Rhoads wasn’t
playing—inspired the song “Crazy Train” or
Pantera’s Darrell “Dimebag” Abbott’s nonstop
guitar riff in “Cowboys From Hell” being stimulus to Philip Anselmo’s lyrical onslaught, our
favorite instrument was the inspirational culprit
over and over again.
Another key move by the authors is listing the
songs chronologically by album release date,
and not ranked in order of most influential.
Kudos to them for not leering over that slippery slope… often the number rankings overshadow the content of book like this—no matter its strength or merit. However, to say there
isn’t any room for debate on the inclusion and
exclusion of songs/artists would be a shallow
line. So, gather your musical buddies, grab
some brews, spin some vinyl and hash out the
details of this book full of metal classics. —CK
List $29.99
courseptr.com
The Fender Telecaster Handbook
By Paul Balmer
The latest of
Balmer’s model-spe-cific handbooks (The
Fender Stratocaster
Handbook and The
Gibson Les Paul
Handbook), this
modest-but-jam-packed volume is
sure to find its place
next the others
on the shelves of
Telecaster enthusiasts and repair shops everywhere. The attraction is not just in its wealth
of detailed information about the guitar that
is arguably Leo Fender’s most consequential
invention; there is also the surplus of specific
advice and precise instructions for maximizing the potential of just about every flavor of
Telecaster out there, along with page after page
of meticulous, full-color photos demonstrating the projects. There’s plenty of eye candy,
too, and Andy Summers, and a long-time Tele
advocate, contributes an earnest and very well
written foreword.
In just under 200 pages, The Fender Telecaster
Handbook shows you how to perform
basic setup and tuning, undertake common
and not-so-common repairs and adjust-
ments (including a comprehensive entry on
B-Benders), and then follows up with case stud-
ies on more than a dozen specific Telecaster
and Esquire models, from the exalted to the
plebian, as well as covering 10 key players and
their guitars. Along the way, Balmer takes the
time to discuss tools and related concerns, as
well to probe the minutiae—sharing, for exam-
ple, Tele luminary Jerry Donahue’s secrets for
setting up and intonating a traditional, three-
brass-saddle bridge.
In keeping with the intention of a truly practical handbook, Balmer also provides a healthy
dose of appendices, along with a glossary and
useful contacts. Appendices cover a gamut of
topics, from historical reference material like
pot codes and serial numbers, to more Tele-specific information, like a case study of pickup
outputs and a discussion of bridge pickup
base plate functions. There is even an appendix dedicated to capacitors that originally
appeared in PG as Dirk Wacker’s “Auditioning
Tone Capacitors” [Mar., 2008].
It’s also gratifying to note that a book as
destined to be used as much as this one
comes in a sturdy hardcover with an ade-
quate binding. If you’re an ardent Tele fan,
or just planning to do some work on one,
this book is a no-brainer. —CB
List $25
voyageurpress.com
Rock and Roll Tourist
By Graham Forbes
Forbes, sometime
bass player for the
Incredible String Band
boasts a list of choice
gigs that’s simply
to long to mention,
but he’s also a highly
skilled raconteur. In
a lively narrative that
manages at turns to
be everything from
boisterous, clever,
blithe, irreverent—
and preposterously
funny— to clearheaded, pointed, avuncular and
humane, Forbes tells the story of his trip around
the world to see some really great bands,
