seattlesteve

I know for a fact he used to read the board, and I would bet he still does. How could he resist? Hi Eric. (I'm sure I just got a hi Steve back Personally I hope he's got his chair facing the other way and writing songs on that keyboard. Seattle Steve

Then there is the memorable solo covers. How can we forget John Travolta's cover of Never Gonna Fall In Love Again? Or his partner in crime Olivia Newton John doing "Boats Against the Current" For the most part I didn't care much for Raspberries preserved. Part of the problem is that no one wants to be a Holiday Inn cover band on the record where your trying to nail the orignal as close as possible. They put their own take on the songs and I prefer the orignal arrangements, and I consider all to have inferior vocals to Eric's. Having said that, I think there are many exciting cover possibilities out there, you just need to attract the right acts.

Jim Bonfanti once told me that during a break from rehearsals for the ill fated Raspberries Reunion tour he called his wife and commented on how quickly they captured the signature Raspberries sound. Unfortunately I think it's much easier to recreate musical chemistry than personality chemistry, particularly since they were so young back then. Record companies, lawyers, and money can provide challenges as well. Speaking of Jim, I still think if Eric got together with him and put Jim's live drums on Top Down Summer and rereleased it during the summer, you got yourself a hit single ala Make Me Lose Control. Now getting a label to promote it...

"The show is an hour long and feaures an artist with an intimate setting performing their hits. Tonight starts the first taping and former Styx keyboardist Dennis Deyoung is the initial guest." Sounds like some o the stuff VH1 has done. I always thought Eric would be great on unplugged or especially Storytellers, something akn to what Billy Joel did.

Darlene, Bernie will have to confirm, but at first listen it sounded like the 1974 Don Kirschner appearance that also featured Overnight Sensataion, GATW, All Through the Night, and closed the show with Play On. That above video is really not as rare as others. The reason sometimes people seem a little hesitant to exchange is the very reason cited earleir, to all of a sudden see your stuff go into production and duplicated and sold on ebay for a profit. There is a close circle of people that have proven not to exploit any material and trade entirely for personal use. It takes a while to crack. To me, one of the hardest ones to obtain is the video of the Hall of Fame show, and I have accumulated a large collection, know a lot of people and have never sold a thing for gain, just traded within circles I trust. I was there saw several video cameras and still can't locate anything. I would love to reach out call in all known material, masters, look for best copy, etc. and help put it together on Eric and the Raspberries behalf, video and audio, and let them put out the definitive and best version available, and sell it on the Internet for a profit, putting the proceeds where they should go. Eric probably makes more in a month of royalties then this project would yield ever, so the interest may not be there. Not to mention the hassle of obtaining rights. I know a guy who does this for a living though. However putting out the best quality authorized version with liner notes effectively kills all bootleg sales which could be reason enough. Check out the hits on this site, there is fan interest.

If my son's first grade class all enters a coloring contest, and his buddy ends up winning, yet he stil thinks his drawing was as good or better, should his frustration be aimed at his buddy or the person who made the pick? Personally I teach him to congratulate the buddy and keep trying. There is a relevance to this story and the message topic.

On the video Eric's looking over at Wally with a big ol grin on his face during the "mumbled" part. Pretty funny

When Fresh (my favorite 'Berries album) came out, everyone was raving about "I Wanna Be With You" and "Let's Pretend" (as was I), but I was playing and introducing people to "If You Change Your Mind", I love that song, great bridge! Seattle Steve

Eric, Hey man, Happy Birthday. I wish you and your family good health and fortune. Hope to see you on the road soon. I say blow off those crazy all-star promoters and hit the club scene with that ace band you put together at the Hall of Fame show, or even consider going solo and acoustic. Good luck and happy birthday! -Seattle Steve-

I know over the years I've "sold" a lot of Eric Carmen music in the Seattle just by exposing everyone too it. The music sels itself. "Oh yeah, love that song...THAT'S Eric Carmen?" You guys know the drill. Hey Michelle, I was in Toronto all last week on business. Did you go to the Toronto show Tuesday (Abbey Road). I had tickets than cancelled when Eric wasn't going to be there. Then I get Toronto, checked into the KinG Edward (Beatle once stayed there) and found out Massey Hall was just about three blocks from my hotel. A business assocate then told me he's going to to a show next week in the states and I was crazy to cancel. Just curious if anyone saw that show.

Whew, final got out of tickets for the Toronto show next week where I was going to be on business. Thanks to Julia in England for the heads up on the refund as my purchase timing did not show Erics name in the line up so I figured I was out of luck. Julia got a refund, so I was able to, after the routine "put me to the supervisor" bit. We were dealing direcly with the venue here, not ticketmaster. Pricey too, as 2 tickets were $163. Would have killed though to see Eric from my row 5 perch. You know it occurred to me durng all the disussion with fans understanding but disappointed, how disappointed Eric must be. Hey I'm bummed I'm missing just one show, but Eric must have been stoked to play with these guys for a whole month! He found himself in a damned if I don't, damned if I do sitution. It's hard being stuck between the devil and the deep blue sea. We're with you though man. It also ocurred to me, that those dates that Rundgren isn't going to make leave a big hole. There is a whole lot of music that comes out of Eric and Todd to fill.

I've said it before, but there is a hit album with just Eric's unreleased material, let alone what he's currently got up his sleeve. Most probably need to be reproduced but heck that's the easy part, at least compared to composing. With all the connections he's made touring with Ringo, etc. it probably wouldn't be that hard to pull in guest musicians for various songs either. And I'll bet Bonfanti is just a phone call away. Hey Eric, if you're not going to release "Devil" give it to Meatloaf and make a quick million. You've out Jim Stienmaned" Jim Stienman. Release it yourself though and make even more, your voice is perfect for the words and melody.

Eric's lyrics are incredible. I think the situation is that Eric knows he is probably the best person to put words to his music, but it's a matter of efficiency. He has endless melodies coming out of his mind, while the lyrics, albeit are excellent, take a lot more time. There are people out there that can come up with lyrics as fast as Eric can come up with melodies, so when he collaberates, you get more EC music, faster. I feel the strongest lyrics in the musical resume were penned entirely by Eric, but if I had to pick a co-writer, I liked the stuff he co-wrote with Pitchford.

Hey Billy K., check out Seattle Karaoke in Southcenter on the parkway. Bought our Karoke machine there (the house we bought actually has a stage in it) and couldn't belive the selection, both machines and music. It's where the KJ's shop.

Thanks for the insight Eric, and like everyone else here, we support your decision. I suspect the promoters (who is the promoter anyway?) seem to have a misunderstanding problem. Besides the deal with Eric, they have all these cancellations. I'm actually hoping they cancel the Toronto show. I'm holding $76.50 non-refundable tickets (Eric never was listed). If not, I'll go anyway and report back on how bad Eric was missed. As it's been said, best way to avoid this is to go solo. Much rather see a full EC set anyway. That was a tight band at the HOF show, are they available? Intimate clubs would be great too. Anyone ever hear Burton Cummings live CD "In the round". It's just him and his piano in a club setting. He tells stories and background info in between each song. I think Eric would be PERFECT in this environment. Low overhead, low maintnenace, low hassle, etc. Great way to test the waters on some of those new songs he's writing too.

Maybe it's just me, but I thought Winter Dreams had a nice mix. I thought "I Could Really Love You," and "Walk Away Renee" rocked. My ear said that Top Down Summer was the single that if released would have caught fire. If anything, I thought the uptempo songs would have benefited from a guest appearance by Jim Bonfanti.

Bernie, Do you or Eric have an email contact at the promoters office that we can flood with our two cents worth? As per usual, many people don't understand the range and depth of Eric's fans. The only way they will add Eric full time, is if they are convinced he will sell more tickets. Let's convince them.

Scott can do a dead on John Lennon. He would have been an interesting addition to the Abbey Road tour.

I don't have a chance for a refund. I rolled the dice and bought my mid-July date tickets directly from the venue which never did list Eric. ...so it looks like we're going either way.

I think one of the problems with a "backyard concert" or any one single show, is that if you employ a band to achieve the full sound it requires so many days of rehearsal (particularly Eric's complicated arrangements), for just one show. You might as well do a full tour for the same rehearsal (hint). Oh there is one other way to go though...Eric could invite my wife and I to his house, and we'll enjoy a cocktail while sitting at his grand piano for an acoustic solo set...

Based on his generosity and appreciation for his fans at the Hall of Fame show, my gut is that Eric not only would do a meet and greet, he would like it. I'm not sure how much say though the artist(s) have over security at the larger events. Was there one in Hawaii? If they did, I think each member should have their own table and line, as it seems like everyone going is going primarily to see one specific artist, so it would sure process things more efficiently for fans and the band alike.

Hey Billy K.-- Your Bremerton home isn't far from me, I'm near Gig Harbor on Fox Island. The answer to your question is fairly controversial, and has been the subject of much discussion (at times heated) over the years. The short answer is only very early versions carry dual credit, Eric is and has been attributed as the sole composer for decades. The issue was over the credit for the famous intro.

Bernie has proven over the years that his information is clearly the best available at the time he posts. He does a great job of balancing "breaking news" with getting even more info. He has a direct and unfiltered pipeline to a straight shooting Eric. There is no better or more current information to the public on Eric Carmen than Bernie.

Todd Rundgrens site has a forum for fan reviews of his concerts, which currently include him solo and with Abbey Road. The Abbey Road reviews are quite mixed, but most seem to cite problems with sound system and harmonies. I'm just speculating but take Eric's message along with the below fan review and it might provide a clue as to what's amiss. Whether it's performance quality, promotor issues, etc. perhaps the reason that people are left hanging at the moment is that at the risk of having less notice, Eric is trying to resolve the issue on our mutual behalfs rather than throw in the towel. -Seattle Steve- Review of Abbey Road Tribute by Lawrence Sweet 6/25/2002 Dear Readers and TR Fans, I wish I could join in a lovefest (as I generally do when TR is involved) about the show in San Diego on June 24th, but I'm afraid this missive is a bit more critical than I wanted to write. It is, after all, only rock and roll, but the polish and musicianship that I experienced at last year's Abbey Road tribute (on TR's birthday, in San Diego) just wasn't present in last night's show. The standard the musicians set for themselves in 2001 hasn't been met yet in 2002. Highlights: --the unheralded and largely unknown members of this band (Godfrey Townsend, John Beck, and the drummer whose name wasn't mentioned enough!). All three musicians anchored the songs solidly when the stars didn't. --Mark Farner. Interesting rendition of "Taxman", crowd pleasin' "I'm Your Captain", complete with wah-wah pedal. A definite asset to the team. --Chris Cross. "Sailing" and "Ride Like The Wind" well done, true to the vinyl arrangements, and with no skips or pops (musically, either). "For No One" nicely performed and vocalized. Good harmonies. The scouts did well adding him to the roster also. Lowlights: --the lack of Pack (David), especially in the vocal department (though his guitar finesse was excellent also). This show suffers, certainly in comparison to last year, from a lack of audible, consistent multi-part harmonies that are integral to the arrangements of the Beatles' songs. Pack's contribution to that important element is obvious now, as was... --Ann Wilson (by not being here). There is no comparable vocal versatility in this year's lineup; the background vocal support is noticeably hollow without her. The sparkle and breadth from a strong female performer that helped to balance the testosterone in last year's band is missing (especially during the Cream songs, which need some serious editing). Ringo took advantage of this same factor by including Sheila E. in the All-Stars lineup last year, and I'm sure it wasn't just because Carl Palmer wasn't available. --Jack Bruce *reading* the lyrics to "Eleanor Rigby" while the back-up band groaned on in the back under the weight of the vocal performance delivered upfront. The audience members around me knew all the words....why didn't the performer? --the "let's all sit on stools with acoustic guitars and generally massacre Beatles songs like the middle-aged hoi polloi do on the weekends in the garage" segment after the intermission. (Or as Todd remarked, "Here's another one we don't know.") Well, gee, I've had fun attending impromptu pakololo-laced musical sessions with the buddies, guffawing at the lack of musical rigor with a hoist of a cold Corona......but I've never paid 60 to 125 bucks to do so. (Unless it was a rare imported beer, of course.) I found the lack of professionalism (and preparation) in this segment to be painful, and bordered on insult. It didn't end soon enough for me. --frequent sound problems, perhaps uncontrollable by the musicians themselves. PA failures, 60 cycle hum, mic outages galore. The most uneven sound reinforcement at this venue I've ever encountered. Closing argument and summation: If you saw this show last year, you know the drill. The individual performers largely do their own material (with a sprinkling of Beatles songs) in the first half, followed by the acoustic abomination and mercifully electrified reanimation of the Beatles' music in the second half. TR was energetic, carried himself well vocally, and being center stage on this outing at least, brought a welcome focal point to the proceedings for the Faithful fan. (And, his rendition of "While My Guitar Gently Weeps" on Clapton's old SG is still killer.) Nonetheless, those looking for great performances and the pixie-dust factor of last year's lineup may find something lacking. If it's just a case of opening night jitters (save the two Hawaii shows), it will only get better. If not, it's gonna be a long summer for the Dung Beatles....and their fans. Peace and health to all.

Let's wait until the situation is settled before we make too many assumptions. There are numerous potential factors at play here, many of which may be out of Eric's control. I appreciate his communication.