Acoustic Storm

Leaping into 2012

2012-01-03T16:58:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year from The Acoustic Storm!

2012 is a leap year, and The Storm jumps into it with Van Morrison, Billy Joel, John Mellencamp, The Who and America as our featured artists for January.

By the way, if you haven't seen "Last Play at Shea," it's worth checking out. As this music documentary/concert film makes clear, Billy Joel's career and the existence of New York's Shea Stadium have some interesting parallels. Of course, that comparison only goes so far, since Billy continues to play music, and Shea was replaced as the Mets' home and occasional concert venue by Citi Field in 2009.

Here's the Eye of The Storm line-up for January:

12/31-1/1 VAN MORRISON

1/7-1/8 BILLY JOEL

1/14-1/15 JOHN MELLENCAMP

1/21-1/22 "WHO'S NEXT" (acoustic versions)

1/28-1/29 AMERICA

The Acoustic Storm is teaming up with Amazon to provide most of the music we play each week on the show. Find Storm music through our links to Amazon, either on CD's, vinyl or mp3's. Everything you purchase online during your Amazon session through The Acoustic Storm helps support the radio show.

Just go to the Playlist Page on the Storm website and click on the Amazon links to purchase the best variety of acoustic-rock!

December Storms

2011-12-02T10:34:00.000-08:00

The holidays are here, and that means "An Acoustic Storm Christmas" will arrive the weekend of 12/24-25. Once again, we'll bring you acoustic rock for the season with Christmas tunes from John Lennon, Bruce Springsteen, the Who, the Moody Blues, the Pretenders and many more. Plus, we've got a special double bill of Yes and ELP in the Eye of The Storm.

Earlier in the month, David Bowie, Eric Clapton and Carole King will get the Storm spotlight in words and music.

Here's a great idea for holiday gift-giving: Acoustic Storm t-shirts, fleeces and hoodies. While you're at it pick up something for yourself! Storm gear is available in lots of styles, colors and sizes for men, women and kids. Just click here to start looking: Storm Gear

EYE OF THE STORM ARTISTS IN DECEMBER:

12/3-12/4 DAVID BOWIE

12/10-12/11 CLAPTON UNPLUGGED

12/17-12/18 CAROLE KING

12/24-12/25 YES and EMERSON, LAKE & PALMER (Acoustic Storm Christmas)

I'd like to take this opportunity to express my gratitude for your support of the show, and sharing our love of the music.

Happy Holidays,

Jeff Parets

November Storms

2011-11-01T17:20:00.000-07:00

We've got a fine line-up of Storms rolling your way this month, starting with CSN in The Eye of The Storm. Just ahead of Thanksgiving, our traditional serving of Arlo Guthrie's "Alice's Restaurant" is scheduled for the weekend of Nov. 19-20. The month will wrap up with some Storm theme sets about home, for Thanksgiving weekend.

The Acoustic Storm has a pair of front-row tickets to see singer/songwriter John Prine with special guest Loudon Wainwright III in Phoenix on Saturday evening, November 19th at the Orpheum Theatre.

To register for the tickets, just email the name of your favorite John Prine song to jp@acousticstorm.com. Entries for the random drawing must be submitted by November 12th at midnight (one entry per family). For more info on the concert, visit dannyzeliskopresents.com.

Here's the November line-up on The Acoustic Storm:

11/5-11/6: CROSBY STILLS & NASH

11/12-11/13: BOB SEGER

11/19-11/20: SIMON & GARFUNKEL (plus "Alice’s Restaurant" by Arlo Guthrie)

11/26-11/27: CREEDENCE CLEARWATER REVIVAL

Celebrating The Acoustic Storm's 13th Anniversary

2011-09-30T16:24:00.000-07:00

We've got lots going on this month on The Acoustic Storm, starting with Pink Floyd in the Eye of The Storm the first weekend of the month. Floyd recently launched their re-issue campaign, coining it "Why Pink Floyd." The first album to receive the deluxe treatment was "The Dark Side of the Moon," and on the 10/1-10/2 Acoustic Storm, we'll play the acoustic demo for "Money."

John Lennon would have turned 71 on October 9th, so for the weekend of 10/8-10/9, we'll remember John, both solo and with The Beatles in the Eye of The Storm.

On October 25, The Acoustic Storm will celebrate its 13th anniversary. The Storm first signed on the air on 10/25/98 on 100.7 KSLX in Phoenix. The first song on that Sunday morning was "Here Comes the Sun" by The Beatles. For this year's anniversary edition of The Acoustic Storm, we'll feature Supertramp in the Eye of The Storm, including excerpts from my interview with Supertramp's signature voice and songwriter, Roger Hodgson.

Of course, October also means Halloween, so we'll offer some musical treats with Storm theme sets featuring the Dead, "Werewolves of London," and some Zombies, among others. For the Halloween show, the Doors will go into the Eye of the The Storm.

So here's the October schedule:

10/1-10/2: PINK FLOYD

10/8-9: JOHN LENNON

10/15-16. STEVIE NICKS & FLEETWOOD MAC

10/22-23: SUPERTRAMP (Acoustic Storm 13th anniversary)

10/29-30: DOORS (Halloween theme)

Stormin' Into Fall

2011-09-03T09:47:00.000-07:00

George Harrison and Beatles fans are looking forward to the premiere of the Martin Scorcese documentary, "George Harrison: Living in the Material World," which will debut on HBO October 5 and 6, and then will be available on DVD.

The film includes interviews with Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr, Eric Clapton, George Martin, Yoko Ono, Tom Petty, Phil Spector, Monty Python alumni Terry Gilliam, Eric Idle, and race-car driver Jackie Stewart.

Get more info on the Harrison documentary and view the trailer at www.georgeharrison.com

Thanks to Dan, jt and Let's Talk Pets for their comments on the August blog. Feel free to post a comment on The Storm here (or Facebook on Acoustic Storm page), and we'll most likely publish it.

September Storms will kick off with the Labor Day Weekend show, featuring some songs that "work" pretty well for the occasion, including music from the Stones, Jackson Browne, Jimmy Buffett, Van Morrison, and of course, Men at Work.

The following weekend, we'll remember the 10th anniversary of 9/11 with special Storm theme sets in honor of the heroes and victims of that tragic day. You'll hear Bruce Springsteen, Eric Clapton, George Harrison, CSNY, Pink Floyd, and Paul Simon, among others.

SEPTEMBER EYE OF THE STORM ARTISTS:

9/3-4: JAMES TAYLOR (some songs for Labor Day Weekend)

9/10-11. STING/POLICE (Theme sets honoring the 10th anniversary of 9/11)

9/17-18. THE WHO

9/-24/25: THE BAND

August on The Acoustic Storm

2011-08-05T13:32:00.000-07:00

It was 30 years ago this month that the original Storm signed on the air in Mesa, Arizona. On August 5th, 1981 at 1:07 pm, The Storm at 107 (KSTM-FM) kicked off its six-year run with "Tomorrow Never Knows" by The Beatles. A creative inspiration for The Acoustic Storm, the original Storm played a wide variety of quality album rock. The Storm also featured some of the Phoenix area's best-known air personalities, including Jeff Parets, Mary McCann, Dennis McBroom, Wendy Weston, Andy Olson, Michele Robins, Johnny D, Lee Powell, Marcus Wright and Terry Ward.

Speaking of anniversaries, on the weekend of August 13-14, The Acoustic Storm will remember Woodstock, the three-day music festival that changed the course of rock history in the summer of '69. We'll present a special double bill in the Eye of The Storm with two of Woodstock's biggest stars, Jimi Hendrix and Janis Joplin.

August Storms will also feature Steely Dan, Jackson Browne and the Moody Blues.

Here's the August schedule in the Eye of The Storm:

8/6-87: STEELY DAN

8/13-8/20: JIMI HENDRIX & JANIS JOPLIN (Woodstock Storm)

8/20-8/21: JACKSON BROWNE

8/27-8/28: MOODY BLUES

July Preview

2011-07-01T14:39:00.000-07:00

We'll start out July with the All-American Acoustic Storm, featuring U.S. artists the weekend of 7/2-7/3. Michigan's Bob Seger & the Silver Bullet Band will go into the Eye of The Storm, and we'll traverse the country with music from Springsteen, Hendrix, James Taylor, the Eagles, the Doors, John Mellencamp, Stevie Nicks, and many more.

The following weekend, we've got Heart in the Eye of The Storm with music from Ann and Nancy Wilson's Acoustic Storm Sessions, recorded last July in Los Angeles. You'll hear exclusive versions of "Crazy on You" and "Barracuda" with excerpts from our conversation with the Wilson sisters.

For 7/16-7/17, Ray Davies and the Kinks get the spotlight in the Eye, and we'll play a Storm-theme set in tribute to the first lunar landing on July 20, 1969 with music from the Beatles, the Police, Bowie and more.

During the weekend of 7/23-7/24, we've got the Traveling Wilburys in the Eye of The Storm for our summer travel theme. With an all-star line-up of George Harrison, Tom Petty, Bob Dylan, Roy Orbison and Jeff Lynne, the Wilburys recorded two albums and left some indelible musical memories. We'll wrap up July with Elton John in the Eye of The Storm.

Keep in mind that you can now purchase Storm music, just click on the Playlist tab on the Acoustic Storm website.

Have a safe & happy 4th of July holiday weekend!

Here's a snapshot of July in the Eye of The Storm:

7/2-7/3: BOB SEGER (All-American Acoustic Storm)

7/9-7/10: HEART (Exclusive acoustic tracks)

7/16-7/17: KINKS

7/23-7/24: TRAVELING WILBURYS (Summer travel theme)

7/30-7/31: ELTON JOHN

Storm Music Finally Available

2011-06-03T13:29:00.000-07:00

For years, Acoustic Storm listeners have been asking for an easy way to purchase music they hear on the show, and we've finally made that possible.

The Storm is teaming up with Amazon to provide many of the songs we play each week on the show. Although not every Storm-track is available for purchase, most of what you hear on the program can be found through our links to Amazon, either on CD's, vinyl or mp3's. Plus, everything you buy online during your Amazon session through The Acoustic Storm helps support the radio show.

Just go to the Playlist Page on the Storm website and click on the Amazon links to purchase the best variety of acoustic-rock.

For June, The Acoustic Storm will celebrate Fathers Day and the start of Summer. We'll start the month with some unplugged Southern-rock from the band that took their name from their high school gym teacher. June will wind up with acoustic British-rock from the group that got their moniker from an 18th century agronomist.

Here's the Eye of The Storm schedule for June:

6/4-6/5: LYNYRD SKYNYRD

6/11-6/12: EAGLES

6/18-6/19: ERIC CLAPTON (Fathers Day show)

6/25-6/26: JETHRO TULL

Earlier this year, we started an Acoustic Storm e-Newsletter. Sign up for it on the Contact page of the Storm website.

Tune in to The Storm in June, and thanks for listening!

-Jeff

Acoustic Storm in May

2011-04-30T11:15:00.000-07:00

We've got a couple of theme shows for May, starting with the Mothers Day Acoustic Storm, spotlighting The Beatles in the Eye of The Storm 5/7-5/8. On May 28 and 29, we'll salute Memorial Day weekend with Bruce Springsteen as the featured artist.

For Mothers Day weekend. we'll feature special sets of "mom-inspired" tracks, including music from Pink Floyd, CCR, Jethro Tull, Paul Simon and Elvis Costello. The Beatles have several maternally-minded songs, including some material from "The White Album" and "Let it Be," so we'll highlight the Fab Four in the Eye of The Storm.

For Memorial Day weekend, The Acoustic Storm will bring you theme sets to honor the occasion. Bruce Springsteen goes into the Eye of The Storm with his acoustic demo for "Born in the USA," along with live versions of "Born to Run" and "Chimes of Freedom."

Other highlights of The Storm's Memorial Day weekend show include John Lennon on acoustic guitar with "Imagine," Billy Joel's powerful Vietnam Vets tribute "Goodnight Saigon," "Blowin in the Wind" from Bob Dylan's 1975 Rolling Thunder Revue, David Gilmour of Pink Floyd live in Poland with "Wish You Were Here," and excellent harmony vocals from David Crosby & Graham Nash on "My Country 'Tis of Thee."

Here's the May schedule in the Eye of The Storm:

4/30-5/1 TOM PETTY & THE HEARTBREAKERS

5/7-5/8 BEATLES (Mothers Day theme)

5/14-15 STEVE MILLER

5/21-22 ROLLING STONES

5/28-5/29 BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN (Memorial Day weekend)

On a sad note, singer-songwriter Phoebe Snow, who first gained fame with her 1974 self-titled album that featured the hit single "Poetry Man," died April 26 at the age of 60. She had suffered a brain hemorrhage in January of 2010.

The album "Phoebe Snow" turned the singer into a star. She made the cover of Rolling Stone, appeared on"Saturday Night Live" and was nominated for a Grammy as best new artist.

"Phoebe Snow has made it," Stephen Holden wrote in a 1975 review for Rolling Stone. "On a musical level she shows the potential of becoming a great jazz singer. Among confessional pop songwriters she immediately ranks with the finest."

Snow was hard to categorize musically. With her multi-octave range, she combined elements of pop, jazz, blues, gospel and folk. She explained to the New York Times in 2003, "No creative person should ever produce the same thing over and over."

But Snow was never able to duplicate her early commercial success. Her career took a backseat to caring for her daughter, Valerie Rose Laub, born in 1975 with severe brain damage. Her daughter died in 2007. A few months later, Snow started performing again, trying to deal with her loss.

Phoebe Snow was born Phoebe Laub on July 17, 1950, in New York City and grew up in Teaneck, N.J. As a youngster she studied piano, then switched to the guitar. However, taking guitar lessons affected her singing style.

"I finally said, 'I can't play these guitar lines but maybe I can sing them.' I tried to sing the way a guitar sounds and the way a saxophone sounds too."

Original poetry became the basis of her lyrics, and she started playing at New York clubs and signed with Shelter Records in 1974.

Snow moved to Columbia Records in 1976 and earned a second gold record with the album "Second Childhood," but subsequent releases didn't sell as well, and she left the label at the end of the 1970s.

After being quiet most of the 1980s, Snow recorded a comeback album in 1989's "Something Real" for Elektra.

In 1991, she was part of the "New York Soul and Revue," put together by Steely Dan's Donald Fagen.

Snow released a live album in 2008.

In 1998 she told a reporter, "I faded away for a while out of necessity. In hindsight, I missed out on some good or productive years. On the other hand … I really made the only choice I could under the circumstances."

April: Zeppelin's BBC Sessions, Earth Day...

2011-04-01T13:09:00.000-07:00

Spring has sprung, and we've got a busy April. First off, it's Fleetwood Mac in the Eye of The Storm with a couple of demos from "Rumours." Next up, we'll celebrate the 40th anniversary of Led Zeppelin's BBC Sessions with some performances from that historic show in April of 1971. The Acoustic Storm's Earth Day show with Bob Dylan is slated for April 16-17, and we'll wrap up the month with Billy Joel in words and music.

We recently started a monthly Acoustic Storm e-Newsletter. Sign up for it on the Contact page of the Storm website.

Here's the April schedule of featured artists on The Acoustic Storm:

4/2-4/3 FLEETWOOD MAC

4/9-10 LED ZEPPELIN

4/16-17 BOB DYLAN (Earth Day theme)

4/23-24 BILLY JOEL

March 2011

2011-03-04T11:35:00.000-08:00

The second weekend of the month will provide a new twist on The Who in the Eye of The Storm. For the weekend of 3/12-3/13, we'll explore the acoustic side of The Who's classic 1971 album "Who's Next" with demos and unplugged performances, along with a track from the album itself.

On that same show, we'll play music from some of the artists that are heading into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame this month. In order of their appearance on that episode of The Storm, we'll hear from Leon Russell, Neil Diamond, Dr. John and Tom Waits.

We've also got a couple of Irish artists to celebrate St. Patrick's Day in the middle hour of the 3/12-13 Acoustic Storm with Van Morrison and U2.

There's speculation that a Buffalo Springfield reunion may be in the works. Neil Young, Stephen Stills and Richie Furay, the surviving members of the band, reunited onstage for the first time in 42 years last October at Neil's Bridge School benefit concerts in Mountain View, California.

Buffalo Springfield formed in 1966 and broke up less than three years later. Original bassist Bruce Palmer died in 2004, and drummer Dewey Martin passed away in 2009.

The Bridge School shows featured Young, Stills and Furay, along with drummer Joe Vitale and Young's longtime bassist Rick Rosas. Some of the Springfield songs they performed included "For What It's Worth," "Rock N Roll Woman," "Mr. Soul," and "Bluebird."

So we're looking forward to bringing you Buffalo Springfield in the Eye of The Storm the weekend of 3/26-27.

Here's the March schedule of featured artists on The Acoustic Storm:

3/5-3/6 BOB SEGER & THE SILVER BULLET BAND

3/12-13 ACOUSTIC VERSIONS FROM "WHO'S NEXT"

3/19-26 DOOBIE BROTHERS

3/26-27 BUFFALO SPRINGFIELD

Valentines Storm, Harrison, Silver Screen Storm...

2011-02-04T09:44:00.000-08:00

We've got some theme shows scheduled for February, starting with the 2/12-2/13 Valentines Acoustic Storm. Heart will get the spotlight in the Eye of The Storm with Ann & Nancy Wilson in words and music, as we'll weave the theme of love throughout the show with music from Eric Clapton, John Lennon, Van Morrison and Leon Russell, among others.

Our other theme show for February is 2/26-2/27, when the Storm will zoom in on acoustic-rock from the movies to celebrate the Oscars, featuring The Doors in the Eye of The Storm. You'll hear music from "The Graduate," "Jerry Maguire," "A Hard Day's Night," "Up in the Air," "Almost Famous" and many more excellent films.

Here's the February schedule for artists in the Eye of The Storm:

2/5-2/6 PINK FLOYD

2/12-13 HEART (Valentines theme)

2/19-26 GEORGE HARRISON & THE BEATLES

2/26-27 DOORS (Movie theme for the Oscars)

Stormin' into 2011

2011-01-08T07:32:00.000-08:00

I hope 2011 has been good for you so far. Besides the new year, January brings a new line-up of artists in the Eye of The Storm:

1/1-1/2: ROLLING STONES

1/8-1/9: VAN MORRISON

1/15-1/16: JOHN MELLENCAMP

1/22-1/23: DAVID BOWIE

1/29-1/30: CAROLE KING (40th Anniversary of "Tapestry")

The first week of the new year also brought some sad news. On January 4th, Gerry Rafferty passed away at the age of 63. The singer-songwriter, best known for his solo hit "Baker Street" as well as "Stuck In The Middle With You" with his band Stealers Wheel, was hospitalized in November for liver failure. Rafferty had a #1 album in the U.S. with 1978's "City To City," which featured "Baker Street." "Stuck In The Middle With You" also received new life in the '90s, thanks to its infamous use in Quentin Tarantino's "Reservoir Dogs."

Gerald Rafferty was born on April 16 1947 into a working-class family in Paisley, Scotland. As a teenager he taught himself to play banjo and busked illegally on the London Underground, an experience which inspired "Baker Street." By 1968, he was playing bass in a succession of bands. But Rafferty soon realized that folk music was his first love, and he joined a trio called the Humblebums.

In 1971 Rafferty formed Stealers Wheel with Rab Noakes and his childhood friend Joe Egan. The group’s debut album, released in December 1972, was produced by Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller, and featured folksy harmonies and strong melody lines.

The album included the quirky "Stuck In The Middle With You," with which Rafferty and Stealers Wheel enjoyed their biggest hit. Although that song enjoyed great chart success in May 1973, it basically turned out to be a one-hit wonder. After a succession of band members joining and leaving — Rafferty himself dropped out for a couple of months before returning to record a follow-up — Stealers Wheel vanished into obscurity.

Although disillusioned and preoccupied with management problems, Rafferty re-emerged five years later with a solo album, "City To City," which sold more than five million copies, and included "Baker Street." When it was released as a single in April 1978, "Baker Street" took off on both sides of the Atlantic, reaching No 3 in Britain and No 2 in the U.S.

"Baker Street" transcended the regular folk genre with its signature saxophone riff played by Raphael Ravenscroft. In fact Rafferty had been planning to sing the melody, but changed his mind. “At the last moment I decided the song needed a wailing, lonely, big-city sound to it,” he said. “The guy who eventually played the solo was a guy called Raphael Ravenscroft. With a name like that, I reckoned he had to be good – and he was.

“It’s every songwriter’s ambition to come up with at least one song in their lifetime that’s regarded as a classic,” he added. “And Baker Street is mine.”

Storm Holiday Happenings

2010-12-15T09:23:00.000-08:00

This weekend, we're looking forward to An Acoustic Storm Christmas. It comes a little earlier this year, because Christmas falls on a Saturday, and most of our stations run the show on Sunday.

This special edition of The Storm will feature some rarely-heard Christmas tunes from Pete Townshend, Jackson Browne, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Jeff Beck and the Pretenders. We've also got holiday classics from John Lennon, Bruce Springsteen, Elton John and the Eagles.

There's a double bill in the Eye of The Storm as Jon Anderson of Yes and Greg Lake of ELP share their Christmas memories. Plus, you'll hear vintage Beatles' Christmas greetings and music from their fan club records. It's An Acoustic Storm Christmas December 18-19.

Also, check out the Organic Tracks holiday show with Christmas music from the Fray, Sarah McLachlan, Michael Buble, Coldplay, Dave Matthews, Jack Johnson and many more. You can listen online, just click on the Stations page at http://organictracks.com/.

As long as we're on the subject of the holidays, here's a great gift idea for guitar lovers who will be in Arizona over the next few weeks. The beautiful and critically-acclaimed MIM Music Theater, located in the Musical Instrument Museum in Phoenix, will be featuring performances by Windham Hill acoustic guitarist Alex de Grassi (January 20) and rock pioneer Dick Dale and his son Jimmy Dale (January 29). Purchase a spot in the 1/28 Dick Dale Master Class and your gift recipient will be on stage with the King of the Surf Guitar himself. International Guitar Night 2011 comes to MIM on February 4 with some of the world's foremost contemporary acoustic guitarists.

The MIM Store has some unique world music instruments, including ukuleles, didgeridoos, thunder sticks, theramins, Santana congas and other percussive instruments. Plus, you'll find books on all sorts of genres of music, and DVDs and CDs from your favorite artists that you won't find anywhere else in the Phoenix area.

For tickets to MIM events or more information, visit http://www.themim.org.

Happy Holidays from The Acoustic Storm!

Great Gift Idea: Storm T-Shirts & Fleeces

2010-11-03T13:03:00.000-07:00

If you're starting to put together your holiday gift-list, think about an Acoustic Storm t-shirt, fleece or sweatshirt for the Storm listener in your life...and while you're at it, outfit yourself for winter with some Storm Gear.

Just surf over to "Features" on the Acoustic Storm Web site and choose from a wide selection of styles, colors and sizes for men, women and children. Items are mailed out promptly, so you should get your Storm shirts in plenty of time for the holidays!

November Artists

2010-11-03T12:46:00.000-07:00

We've got a reservation at "Alice's Restaurant" for our annual Thanksgiving feast with Arlo Guthrie. That's coming up on the 11/20-21 Acoustic Storm. Here's how the month shapes up:

11/6-7: TOM PETTY

11/13-14: STEVIE NICKS & FLEETWOOD MAC

11/20-21: SIMON & GARFUNKEL

11/27-28: JOHN FOGERTY & CREEDENCE CLEARWATER REVIVAL

Thanks for listening to The Acoustic Storm!

October Storm Artists & Themes

2010-10-01T15:49:00.000-07:00

Some special themes this month...

John Lennon would have been 70 on October 9, so we'll feature John,
both solo and with The Beatles in the Eye of The Storm that weekend.
We'll also work in a couple of themes; a set of Storm tunes about
women (in the first hour of the show), and since that Sunday is
10/10/10, we'll play three bands that have the number 10 in their name
(in the last hour of the program).

The Acoustic Storm celebrates 12 years of acoustic-rock on October 25,
and we'll do a Storm-themed show the weekend of 10/23-24 with songs about
stormy phenomenon. Rain and wind have been the titles of some major Bob Dylan songs, thus the former Robert Zimmerman gets the spotlight.

Halloween falls on a Sunday this year, so we'll come up with some music that
evokes the spirit of Halloween with the Doors in the Eye of The Storm.

Here's the October schedule:

10/2-10/3 EAGLES

10/9-10/10 JOHN LENNON (70th Birthday Tribute)

10/16-10/17 MOODY BLUES

10/23-10/24 BOB DYLAN (Stormy theme)

10/30-10/31 DOORS (Halloween theme)

Heart Acoustic Sessions on Acoustic Storm

2010-08-29T12:44:00.000-07:00

This past July, The Acoustic Storm spoke with Ann and Nancy Wilson of Heart in Los Angeles, as the band recorded an acoustic session. Songs included "Crazy on You," "Barracuda" and several acoustic versions of tracks from Heart's new release, "Black Velvet Car," which is coming out this Tuesday.

We'll feature music from that acoustic session and excerpts from our interview on the 9/18-9/19 Acoustic Storm with Heart in the Eye of The Storm.

Here's the entire schedule for September Storm artists:

9/4-5 JAMES TAYLOR

9/11-12 CROSBY STILLS & NASH

9/18-19 HEART (Summer 2010 Acoustic Sessions)

9/25-26 THE WHO

August Artists on The Acoustic Storm

2010-08-01T15:19:00.000-07:00

This month, we'll celebrate the 41st anniversary of Woodstock with an entire show dedicated to many of the artists that performed during that historic weekend at Yasgur's Farm in upstate New York. You'll hear music from the Who, Santana, Jefferson Airplane, the Dead and many more. Plus, Jimi Hendrix and Janis Joplin will share the spotlight in the Eye of The Storm.

Here's the Storm line-up for August 2010....

7/31-8/1 JETHRO TULL

8/7-8/8 ELTON JOHN

8/14-8/15 JIMI HENDRIX / JANIS JOPLIN (Woodstock anniversary)

8/21-8/22 JACKSON BROWNE

8/28-8/29 LYNYRD SKYNYRD

July Storm Artists

2010-07-05T12:59:00.000-07:00

This month, we're celebrating the 4th of July holiday weekend and summer travel with special theme shows. If you're taking a long road trip this month, be safe!

7/3-4 BOB SEGER (All-American Acoustic Storm)

7/10-11 THE BAND

7/17-18 PINK FLOYD

7/24-25 TRAVELING WILBURYS (Travel Theme)

Thanks for listening to The Acoustic Storm,

Jeff

Fathers Day Storm and June Artists

2010-05-31T17:55:00.000-07:00

For Fathers Day weekend (6/19-20), we'll play some special Storm sets with a paternal theme, including "Cats in the Cradle" from Harry Chapin, Paul McCartney's "Put it There," Jimmy Buffett with "Son of a Son of a Sailor," Cat Stevens' "Father & Son" and lots more. Plus, we'll feature Eric Clapton in the Eye of The Storm.

This year's Fathers Day show is dedicated to my dad, Edwin Parets, who passed away in February.

Here's the June slate of artists on The Acoustic Storm:

6/5-6: DAVID BOWIE

6/12-13: ROLLING STONES

6/19-20: ERIC CLAPTON (Father’s Day theme)

6/26-27: VAN MORRISON

Memorial Day Weekend Acoustic Storm

2010-05-17T21:05:00.000-07:00

For the weekend of 5/29-30, The Acoustic Storm will feature special
theme sets to honor Memorial Day.

We'll profile Bruce Springsteen in the Eye of The Storm with his
acoustic demo for "Born in the USA," along with live versions of
"Born to Run" and "Chimes of Freedom."

Other highlights of The Acoustic Storm Memorial Day Weekend show include
John Lennon on acoustic guitar with "Imagine," Billy Joel's powerful
Vietnam Vets tribute "Goodnight Saigon," "Blowin in the Wind" from Bob Dylan's
1975 Rolling Thunder Revue, David Gilmour of Pink Floyd live in Poland with
"Wish You Were Here," and a great harmony vocal performance by Crosby & Nash on "My Country 'Tis of Thee."

Mothers Day Storm and May Artists

2010-04-30T20:35:00.000-07:00

For Mothers Day weekend (5/8-5/9), we'll feature special sets of "mom-inspired" tracks, including music from Pink Floyd, CCR, Jethro Tull, Paul Simon and Elvis Costello. The Beatles have several maternally-minded songs, so we'll highlight the Fab Four in the Eye of The Storm.

Here's the May schedule for featured artists on The Acoustic Storm:

5/1-5/2: BILLY JOEL

5/8-5/9: BEATLES (Mothers Day theme)

5/15-5/16: LED ZEPPELIN

5/22-5/23: STEVE MILLER

5/29-5/30: BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN (Memorial Day Weekend)

April Storms: AS #600, Earth Day, and Baseball

2010-03-28T12:13:00.000-07:00

More great acoustic-rock will rain on Storm listeners during
the month of April.

Fleetwood Mac takes centerstage in the Eye of The Storm for
the first weekend of April. 4/4 is opening day (or should I say, opening night)
of Major League Baseball, so we'll celebrate with acoustic music for our national
pastime, and baseball Hall of Famer Ferguson Jenkins will "pitch" in as
well.

Earth Day is April 22nd, so we'll get into the ecological mind set
with some green acoustic-rock from Neil Young, Paul McCartney, Joni Mitchell
and Midnight Oil. Plus, Bob Dylan gets the spotlight in the Eye of The Storm

On the last show of April, we'll celebrate the 600th Acoustic Storm, by
featuring Tom Petty in the Eye of The Storm.

Thanks for all your support of The Acoustic Storm since October of 1998!

4/3-4: FLEETWOOD MAC (Baseball, too)

4/10-11: MOODY BLUES

4/17-18: DYLAN (Earth Day Storm)

4/24-25: TOM PETTY (Acoustic Storm #600)

March Artists and Themes

2010-03-01T11:31:00.000-08:00

March has always been known as the windy month, but more recently it has also become a ceremonial month for music and film.

For the weekend of 3/6-7, The Acoustic Storm will be featuring acoustic-rock from the movies to celebrate the March 7th Academy Awards.

The Doors will star in the Eye of The Storm, with music from Oliver Stone's 1991 biopic, "The Doors" and rare sound bites from Jim Morrison and Ray Manzarek.

The main cast will also include The Beatles, Led Zeppelin, Stones, Who, Clapton, Petty, Seger, Dylan, and Jackson Browne, among others. We'll hear music from movies like "The Big Chill," "Forest Gump," "Jerry Maguire." "The Graduate," and one of this year's most-nominated films, "Up in the Air."

On March 15th, Genesis and the Hollies will be among the artists inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

For the weekend of 3/13-14, we'll feature Genesis in the Eye of The Acoustic Storm, including solo stuff from Peter Gabriel and Phil Collins.

For the weekend of 3/27-28, the Graham Nash and the Hollies will get the spotlight in the Eye of The Storm.

Here's the March schedule:

3/6-7: DOORS (Silver Screen Storm: salute to the Oscars)

3/13-14: GENESIS (Rock Hall of Fame Tribute)

3/20-21: BOB SEGER

3/27-28: HOLLIES (Rock Hall of Fame Tribute)

Storm Moves to Saturday Mornings in Phoenix on KSLX

2010-02-14T22:00:00.000-08:00

Acoustic Storm listeners in Phoenix asked 100.7 KSLX to bring back the third hour and return The Storm to weekend mornings, and the station has obliged.

So The Acoustic Storm now airs Saturday mornings from 6-9 on KSLX.

The Acoustic Storm's first-ever episode aired on KSLX Sunday morning, October 25, 1998. The Storm moved over to KPKX-The Peak in Phoenix in 2004 and returned to KSLX last August, running Sunday evenings from 8-10.

Thanks for your support, and see you Saturday mornings for the full three-hour Storm in the Valley on 100.7 KSLX!

Super February on The Storm

2010-01-31T12:13:00.000-08:00

The Acoustic Storm will celebrate February with some theme shows.

Since Super Bowl 44 will feature The Who as half-time headliners, we'll spotlight Pete Townshend and The Who in the Eye of The Storm on the weekend of February 6-7.

We've also got a couple of songs in honor of each Super Bowl team. For the New Orleans Saints, we've combined the titles of a couple of songs into "It's Hard To Be a Saint in the City of New Orleans" with Bruce Springsteen from his debut album and Arlo Guthrie's cover of the Steve Goodman classic. For the Indianapolis Colts, it wasn't as easy to come up with songs that have "Indianapolis" or "colts" in the title, so we'll play one of Indiana's favorite sons, John Mellencamp with an acoustic version of "Pink Houses," along with some stripped Stones with "Wild Horses."

For the weekend of Feb. 13-14, The Acoustic Storm will celebrate Valentine's Day with an entire show dedicated to the theme of love. Of course, you gotta have heart with Valentine's Day, so we'll focus on Ann and Nancy Wilson with Heart in the Eye of The Storm. You'll also hear music from the Lovin' Spoonful and the critically-acclaimed band Love. Plus, we'll keep the Valentine's theme going with acoustic rock from The Beatles, Stones, Springsteen, Dylan, Clapton, Doors, Van Morrison and lots more.

February 25th would have been George Harrison's 67th birthday, so we'll highlight George, both solo and with The Beatles in the Eye of the Storm the weekend of Feb. 20-21.

For the last Storm of February, we'll escape winter (at least musically) with a weekend getaway featuring the "Mayor of Margaritaville" in the Eye of The Storm with Jimmy Buffett in words and music.

Here's a plug for Lauren Greenfield. She's the daughter of Storm-friend Mark Greenfield, who got the ball rolling for The Acoustic Storm on Majic 102.7 in Miami-Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. Lauren is attending Florida State as an Interior Design major and is competing for a Blackfish scholarship to study in Italy for six weeks this summer. Help Lauren win that scholarship by clicking here. Vote early and vote often!

February Storm Artists in the Eye:

2/6-7: The Who
2/13-14: Heart
2/20-21: George Harrison & The Beatles
2/27-28: Jimmy Buffett

Stormin' Into a New Decade

2010-01-01T17:53:00.000-08:00

The first month of 2010 brings five weekends with it, so without further
ado, here's the Eye of The Acoustic Storm line-up for January...

DOOBIE BROTHERS (1/2-3)

JETHRO TULL (1/9-10)

JOHN MELLENCAMP (1/16-17)

VAN MORRISON (1/23-24)

CROSBY STILLS & NASH (1/30-31)

Looking forward to another 12 months of great acoustic-rock,
and wishing you a happy and healthy new year!

-Jeff

Heading Towards An Acoustic Storm Christmas

2009-12-02T10:21:00.000-08:00

The Acoustic Storm will bring holiday cheer to the airwaves the weekend of 12/19-12/20 with our annual presentation of "An Acoustic Storm Christmas." This special edition of the show will feature a double bill in the Eye of The Storm with Yes and Emerson, Lake & Palmer, as you'll hear Christmas music and memories from Jon Anderson of Yes and Greg Lake of ELP.

We've also got traditional Christmas songs from Bruce Springsteen, David Bowie (with Bing Crosby), Marshall Tucker and Jeff Beck; plus acoustic-rock holiday classics from John Lennon, Elton John, the Eagles and Jethro Tull.

As an added treat, we'll head to the archives for those vintage Christmas messages from the Beatles to their fan club, which date back to the early '60s.

Here's the December line-up for featured artists in the Eye of The Storm:

CLAPTON Unplugged (12/5-6)

JACKSON BROWNE Solo & Acoustic (12/12-13)

YES and EMERSON LAKE & PALMER: Acoustic Storm Christmas (12/19-20)

THE BAND (12/26-27)

Happy Holidays from The Acoustic Storm!

November Featured Artists

2009-10-30T21:55:00.000-07:00

Here's the line-up for November of artists that we'll focus on in the Eye of The Storm:

October 31 - Nov 1 BILLY JOEL
November 7-8 PINK FLOYD
November 14-15 FLEETWOOD MAC
November 21-22 SIMON & GARFUNKEL
November 28-29 CCR/JOHN FOGERTY

11 Years of Acoustic Rock

2009-10-02T21:47:00.000-07:00

The Acoustic Storm will celebrate its 11th year on the air October 25.
The show debuted 10/25/98 on 100.7 KSLX in Phoenix as a two-hour program,
and the first song was "Here Comes the Sun" by The Beatles.

The weekend of October 24-25, we'll be featuring an entire theme show
with songs about storms (or at least titled that way).

Since Bob Dylan has some stormy tunes, he'll be featured in the Eye of The Storm.

Here's the line-up of featured Storm artists for October...

10/3-10/4 JOHN LENNON & THE BEATLES

10/10-10/11 NEIL YOUNG (Solo and with CSN)

10/17-10/18 LED ZEPPELIN

10/24-10/25 BOB DYLAN (Acoustic Storm Anniversary Show)

Storm Listener Makes a Difference in Miami

2009-09-08T00:16:00.000-07:00

Kudos to Mark Greenfield of Sunrise, Florida who brought The Acoustic Storm to the attention of Majic 102.7 in Miami. Mark had been tuning in to The Storm on-line, because the program was not available on the radio dial in the Miami area.

So Mark emailed and called his favorite Miami station, Majic 102.7, asking them to consider adding The Acoustic Storm. Program Director Bill Stedman and Assistant PD Mindy Lang asked me for a demo of the program, and within two weeks The Acoustic Storm was added to the Majic broadcast schedule and now airs every Sunday morning from 6-10.

Thanks Mark, for proving that listeners still have a lot of say when it comes to their local radio station!

Spiffier Storm Web site

2009-09-05T00:24:00.000-07:00

We've tweaked the design of the Acoustic Storm Web site, and hope you enjoy the subtle changes. Even this blog has a slightly different look.

Here's the line-up of featured artists for September in the Eye of The Acoustic Storm:

9/5-9/6: BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN (Labor Day Weekend Songs and 9/11 Tribute Sets)

9/12-9/13: JAMES TAYLOR

9/19-9/20: ROLLING STONES

9/26-9/27: ROD STEWART

Acoustic Storm Returning to KSLX in Phoenix

2009-08-01T14:22:00.000-07:00

I hope you're surviving the dog days of summer. Here’s the Eye of The Storm schedule for August, including our special Woodstock 40th anniversary celebration the weekend of the 15th and 16th:

8/1-2: ELTON JOHN

8/8-9: DOOBIE BROTHERS

8/15-16: WOODSTOCK SPECIAL (JIMI HENDRIX & JANIS JOPLIN)

8/22-23: STEVE MILLER

8/29-30: THE WHO

We’ve got important news for Phoenix listeners of The Acoustic Storm:

On August 16th, The Storm will be returning to its original radio home in Phoenix on 100.7 KSLX. Now in its 11th year in the Valley, The Acoustic Storm will air Sunday evenings from 8-10 with the best variety of acoustic-rock.

Meanwhile, I’ll be producing a brand new radio program that will debut 8/16/09 on 98.7 The Peak in Phoenix.

Organic Tracks will feature acoustic and unplugged music from today's best artists, including John Mayer, Dave Matthews, Sheryl Crow, Maroon 5, Norah Jones and Jack Johnson.

Hosted by Phoenix-based voice talent Zoe Moore, Organic Tracks will air Sunday mornings from 7-9 on The Peak.

I look forward to hearing your thoughts on this blog or by email, and if you’re in the Phoenix area, I hope you'll join us Sunday, August 16th at 7:00 am for the premiere of Organic Tracks on 98.7 The Peak.

By the way, both The Peak and KSLX stream their on-air signals, so if you're out of town, you can tune in to Organic Tracks and The Acoustic Storm online:

http://www.987thepeak.com/

http://www.kslx.com/

Thanks for your support!

Jeff

All-American Acoustic Storm

2009-07-02T21:28:00.000-07:00

In celebration of the 4th of July holiday weekend, The Acoustic Storm will be featuring All-American acoustic rock. You'll hear artists that were "Born in the USA." Of course, that includes Bruce Springsteen, but you'll also hear the Eagles, Tom Petty, Doors, Dylan, Stevie Nicks, John Mellencamp, Allman Brothers and many more. Plus, we'll spotlight one of Michigan's favorite sons, as Bob Seger goes into the Eye of The Storm.

The line-up for July artists on The Acoustic Storm:

7/4-7/5 BOB SEGER (All-American Acoustic Storm)

7/11-7/12 LYNYRD SKYNYRD

7/18-7/19 KINKS (including a Storm set in tribute to the 1969 Moon Landing)

7/25-7/26 TRAVELING WILBURYS (Summer travel theme)

Tuning into June

2009-05-29T10:33:00.000-07:00

We've got the annual Acoustic Storm Father's Day show on the third weekend of June, with some "paternal" acoustic-rock, featuring Eric Clapton in the Eye of The Storm as Clapton recalls his relationship with his father and his own fatherhood.

Here's the rest of the line-up of featured artists for the month:

6/6-6/7: PINK FLOYD

6/13-6/14: PAUL McCARTNEY (both solo and with The Beatles)

6/20-6/21: ERIC CLAPTON (Father's Day show)

6/27-6/28: JONI MITCHELL

The Month of May

2009-05-03T22:03:00.000-07:00

Program highlights in May include the annual Acoustic Storm Mother's Day show, as we'll roll out some "maternal" acoustic-rock with Pink Floyd's "Mother," plus music from Dylan & The Band, Mott the Hoople and a couple of tunes from The Beatles' "White Album."

On a personal note, the 5/9-5/10 Acoustic Storm is dedicated to the memory of my mother, Lynne T. Parets. Her birthday (May 11th) often fell on Mother's Day. A lot of my musical inspiration comes from Mom and her side of the family. My grandmother was an accomplished concert pianist and violinist, while Papa was a gifted opera singer.

Here's a look at May's scheduled artists in the Eye of The Storm...

5/2-3: STEVE MILLER

5/9-10: JEFFERSON AIRPLANE/STARSHIP Music Family

5/16-17: ROLLING STONES

5/23-24: CROSBY STILLS & NASH

5/30-31: FLEETWOOD MAC

J.D. Souther Interview & April Storm Artists

2009-04-01T08:17:00.000-07:00

Check out The Acoustic Storm's exclusive interview with J.D. Souther on The Storm Web site.

Souther co-wrote several of the Eagles biggest hits, including "Best of My Love," "New Kid in Town," and "Heartache Tonight." He also collaborated with Don Henley on "Heart of the Matter" and wrote several songs for Linda Ronstadt.

Larry Coffman spoke with J.D. about his songwriting, as well as his first solo album in 25 years, "If the World Was You."

April is shaping up to be an excellent month for featured artists in The Eye of The Acoustic Storm. Here's the line-up:

4/4-5 STEVE WINWOOD & TRAFFIC

4/11-12 EAGLES

4/18-19 BOB DYLAN (Earth Day Acoustic Storm)

4/25-26 LED ZEPPELIN

Artists Marching Into The Storm

2009-02-23T20:27:00.000-08:00

Here's the line-up of featured artists for March in the Eye of The Storm:

2/28-3/1: BYRDS

3/7-3/8: THE WHO

3/14-3/15: VAN MORRISON (and other Irish artists for St. Patty's Day)

3/21-3/22: ELTON JOHN

3/28-3/29: LYNYRD SKYNYRD

February Theme Shows

2009-02-03T11:32:00.000-08:00

A couple of specially-themed shows are on tap this month on The Acoustic Storm. February 14th and 15th, we'll celebrate Valentine's Day weekend with acoustic rock from the heart with Ann and Nancy Wilson and Heart in the Eye of The Storm. The following weekend (2/21-22), we'll salute the Oscars with our annual Silver Screen Acoustic Storm, featuring acoustic-rock from the movies and The Beatles in the Eye of The Storm.

2/7-2/8: John Fogerty and CCR
2/14-2/15: Heart (Valentine's acoustic-rock)
2/21-2/22: Beatles (Silver Screen Acoustic Storm)

Stormin' into '09

2009-01-01T11:14:00.000-08:00

We'll kick off 2009 with Bruce Springsteen in the Eye of The Storm. Bruce and the E Street Band are returning to the spotlight early in the year with a new album later this month, and a headlining performance at Super Bowl 43 February 1 in Tampa Bay.

Here's how the rest of January is shaping up for featured artists on The Acoustic Storm...

1/3-1/4: BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN
1/10-1/11: STEELY DAN
1/17-1/18: JOHN MELLENCAMP (including a theme set for MLK Day and Obama inauguration)
1/24-1/25: NEIL YOUNG

Happy New Year!

An Acoustic Storm Christmas

2008-12-13T17:25:00.001-08:00

AN ACOUSTIC STORM CHRISTMAS

The Acoustic Storm brings Christmas cheer to the airwaves next weekend (12/20-12/21) with acoustic rock for the holidays. An Acoustic Storm Christmas will feature a double bill in the Eye of The Storm with Yes and Emerson, Lake & Palmer, featuring Christmas music and memories from Jon Anderson of Yes and Greg Lake of ELP.

You'll also hear traditional Christmas songs from Bruce Springsteen,
David Bowie (with Bing Crosby), Marshall Tucker and Jeff Beck; plus
acoustic-rock holiday classics from John Lennon, Elton John, the
Eagles and Jethro Tull.

As an added treat, we'll head to the archives for those vintage Christmas messages from the Beatles to their fan club, which date back to the early '60s.

One of the songs we'll play is "Same Old Lang Syne" by the late Dan Fogelberg. Larry Coffman wrote the following article exclusively for the Acoustic Storm Web site:

***************************
There have been many songs recorded in the rock era that tell a story. But the crème de la crème of these is "Same Old Lang Syne" by Dan Fogelberg. It is a masterful retelling of an experience he had in 1975, and it became his signature song.

We remember the song this month because of its strong connection to the holiday season – and because of the first anniversary of Fogelberg’s death.

The song tells a compelling tale of two former lovers who have a chance meeting in a grocery store on Christmas Eve. They had dated in high school and are now adults who have not seen one another in a few years. Their efforts to take their conversation from the market to a bar are foiled when they find that all the taverns are closed. So they stop at a neighborhood liquor store, buy some beer and sip while they chat in the woman’s car.

After Fogelberg died of cancer on December 16, 2007, Jill Greulich stepped forward to reveal she is the woman whom he encountered on that snowy night in Peoria, Illinois. Greulich, now living with her second husband in suburban St. Louis, Missouri, grew up in Peoria and attended Woodruff High School with Fogelberg from 1965 to ’69. Her account of the Christmas Eve event first appeared in the Peoria Journal-Star. Attempts to reach her for additional comments were unsuccessful.

Fogelberg and Greulich, who was Jill Anderson back then, dated intermittently during their high school years. After he departed for the University of Illinois and she for Western Illinois University, they kept in touch and even dated occasionally. But the romance was finished when he left the state to pursue his music career. Dan was playing coffeehouses in Champaign, Ill., when he was discovered by schoolmate and fledgling agent Irving Azoff, who sent the budding star to Los Angeles and then Nashville to sharpen his skills.

Jill, meanwhile, relocated to the Chicago area to work as an elementary school teacher and flight attendant. A man she met there became her first husband.

In December 1975, Jill and her husband were in Peoria for a visit. During a family gathering on the night of the 24th, her mother asked Jill to get some eggnog from a nearby store. She ended up at the Convenient Food Market, where Dan, also home for the holidays, had gone to purchase whipped cream to make Irish coffees.

As they sat in Jill’s car with beer in hand, they caught up on the years that had passed since their last meeting. There were some bittersweet moments, as told by Dan’s skillful lyrical crafting. The two finally ran out of things to talk about and went back to their respective families.

The song ends on a melancholy note, with Dan reliving the high school days he spent as Jill’s lover and feeling the pain of their break-ups. As they part, an idyllic winter night is soured when falling snow "turned into rain."

Five years later the song, which would appear on the album "The Innocent Age," was released. Jill heard it on the radio one morning as she was driving to work and thought it sounded like Dan’s singing. Then she absorbed the lyrics and thought, "Oh my gosh! That really happened!"

The song is factual – to a point. The words say that Dan told Jill, "…her eyes were still as blue." But in reality her eyes are green. Chalk that up to poetic license. They also say that Jill told Dan she had married an architect, when her then-husband actually was a physical education teacher. It’s unlikely that Dan knew what Jill’s husband did for a living and just thought "architect" sounded good, she said.

The memory of the event is one that Jill treasures. She explained that she sat on the secret for so long because "it wasn’t about me, it was about Dan. It was Dan’s song."

The melody at the beginning of each verse comes from Tchaikovsky’s "1812 Overture."

The recording features Fogelberg on acoustic piano, bass and electric piano, and he overdubbed his backing vocals. Russ Kunkel played drums, and the late Michael Brecker played the closing solo snippet of "Auld Lang Syne" on soprano saxophone.

"Auld Lang Syne" is a Scottish poem written by Robert Burns in 1788 and set to the tune of a traditional folk song. Translated, the title means "old long since," "long long ago" or "days gone by."

Band leader Guy Lombardo often is credited with popularizing the use of the song on New Year’s Eve through his annual broadcasts on radio and TV dating back to 1929. He also recorded it in 1939 and ’47.

"Same Old Lang Syne" was not the only song Dan wrote from his personal life. "Leader Of The Band" was about his father, Lawrence Fogelberg, who was an educator and band leader at Woodruff and Pekin high schools. He began an eight-year stint as band director at Bradley University in 1951, the year Dan was born. On his website, Dan wrote, "I was so gratified that I gave him that song before he passed on."

Dan’s mother, Margaret, emigrated from Scotland as a child and was classically trained as a pianist while attending Bradley in the 1940s.

The liner notes from "The Innocent Age" include a thank you from Dan to "my father for his gift of music and my mother for her gift of words."

Paul Evans succinctly summed up the impact of "Same Old Lang Syne" in his liner notes of one of Dan’s last CDs when he wrote, "A Dan Fogelberg song haunts you. It lingers."

That haunting masterpiece will be lingering for many years to come.
********************

Happy Holidays from The Acoustic Storm!

Acoustic Storm Over the Holidays

2008-11-27T09:51:00.000-08:00

It's Thanksgiving Day 2008, so I just want to express my gratitude for your support of The Acoustic Storm. I realize how fortunate I am each week to produce something I'm passionate about, and to present music that is loved by so many of us.

Also, thanks to Karen, Jeff, and Ed for their comments on my previous blog post. It's great to expand the Storm community of listeners and to find out where you're listening. Please feel free to add comments on this blog as there's no shortage of acoustic-rock to talk about.

This holiday weekend, The Acoustic Storm will weave in some sets based on the theme of "home." After all, like they say in the "Wizard of Oz"....there's no place like home. A sample of what we'll hear includes Lynyrd Skynyrd's acoustic version of "Sweet Home Alabama," Simon & Garfunkel's "Homeward Bound," and a couple of Beatles' tunes, "She's Leaving Home" and "Two of Us (On Our Way Back Home)." Plus, Pink Floyd gets the spotlight in the Eye of The Storm with music that spans the career of the band that was named after two bluesmen from the Deep South.

Then it's on to December, and here's what the program line-up looks like for featured artists in the Eye of The Storm:

12/6-12/7: JAMES TAYLOR
12/13-12/14: CLAPTON UNPLUGGED
12/20-12/21: YES and ELP (An Acoustic Storm Christmas)
12/27-12/28: ROLLING STONES

Have a safe and happy Thanksgiving!

Check out archived Acoustic Storm listener posts on The Acoustic Storm Web site.

A November to Remember

2008-10-31T22:20:00.000-07:00

November has arrived, bringing with it a highly-anticipated Presidential Election, Thanksgiving and five Acoustic Storms (come to think of it, a five-weekend month sounds pretty good).

By the way, thank you for the positive feedback on last weekend's 10th anniversary show. The Acoustic Storm has always been a labor of love for me, so your support is truly gratifying. Also, thanks to dan and rushman for their comments on October's A.S. blog.

Here's the schedule for November's featured artists in the Eye of The Storm....

11/1-11/2: JETHRO TULL
11/8-11/9: EAGLES
11/15-11/16: STEVIE NICKS
11/22-11/29: KINKS
(including our annual airing of "Alice's Restaurant" by Arlo Guthrie)
11/29-11/30: PINK FLOYD
(Thanksgiving Weekend: Some Songs About Home)

Of course, this Tuesday is Election Day...so get out and vote!

Acoustic Storm 10th Anniversary

2008-10-04T06:22:00.001-07:00

On October 25, The Acoustic Storm will celebrate 10 years on the air. So we'll commemorate that milestone with a special theme show of "storm-related" songs the weekend of Oct. 25-26. Plus, Bob Dylan will be the featured artist in the Eye of The Storm.

Here's the October schedule for Eye of The Storm artists:

Acoustic Storm #519: JOHN LENNON (10/4-5)
Show #520: JACKSON BROWNE Solo & Acoustic (10/11-12)
Show #521: LED ZEPPELIN (10/18-19) Some Halloween Treats
Show #522: BOB DYLAN (10/25-26) Acoustic Storm 10th Anniversary

By the way, you can check out archived Acoustic Storm listener posts on The Acoustic Storm Web site.

Thanks for your support over the past decade in helping to make acoustic-rock on the radio possible!

September Featured Artists

2008-08-31T22:50:00.001-07:00

The Acoustic Storm kicks off September with a tribute to the heroes and victims of 9/11, featuring extended music theme sets in the second half of each hour. We'll hear Springsteen & the E Street Band from "The Rising," Bruce's musical response to the tragic events of that day, along with John Lennon's original demo for "Imagine," and "Blowin' in the Wind" from Bob Dylan.

Plus, the Police go into the Eye of The Storm with acoustic versions from Sting, including a live performance of "Don't Stand So Close to Me," recorded the evening of 9/11/01.

Here's the entire September schedule for the Eye of The Acoustic Storm:

Acoustic Storm #515: POLICE/STING (9/6-7)
Show #516: DOORS (9/13-14)
Show #517: BILLY JOEL (9/20-21)
Show #518: WHO (9/27-28)

Summer Storm

2008-07-27T23:29:00.000-07:00

August has arrived, bringing with it the dog days of summer, but also the latest list of artists in the Eye of The Acoustic Storm...stay cool!

#510 (8/2-8/3) Simon & Garfunkel
#511 (8/9-8/10) Double Feature: Jimi Hendrix / Janis Joplin (Woodstock theme)
#512 (8/16-8/17) Lindsey Buckingham & Fleetwood Mac
#513 (8/23-8/24) Allman Brothers
#514 (8/30-8/31) Moody Blues (Labor Day weekend)

All-American Acoustic Storm

2008-06-29T23:41:00.000-07:00

With the 4th of July this week, The Acoustic Storm will celebrate the holiday weekend with All-American acoustic rock. You'll hear U.S. artists like the Eagles, Tom Petty, Doors, Dylan, Stevie Nicks, John Mellencamp, the Allman Brothers and many more.

The American theme will kick off with Bruce Springsteen's acoustic demo for "Born in the USA," and continues with Don McLean's "American Pie" and "America" from Simon & Garfunkel. Plus, we'll spotlight one of Michigan's favorite sons, as Bob Seger goes into the Eye of The Storm.

Have a safe and happy holiday weekend, and celebrate with us on the All-American Acoustic Storm!

Upcoming Artists in the Eye of The Storm

2008-06-14T21:13:00.001-07:00

The Beatles will kick off the Summer of '08 on The Acoustic Storm, as we'll take a closer listen to two of their most brilliant albums, "Rubber Soul" and "Revolver" June 21-22.

Within the span of just eight months, The Fab Four expanded their creative vision with the release of two records that incorporated everything from folk-rock to orchestral arrangements, to Indian music. We'll hear acoustic demos for "Norwegian Wood" and "Got to Get You into My Life," as well as the studio versions of "Eleanor Rigby" and "In My Life."

A couple of weeks later, we'll celebrate the Fourth of July Weekend with our annual All-American Acoustic Storm, featuring Bob Seger & the Silver Bullet Band in the Eye of The Storm.

Here's the schedule of featured artists on The Acoustic Storm through July...

#504 (6/21-22): Beatles "Rubber Soul" & "Revolver"
#505 (6/28-29): Jethro Tull
#506 (7/5-7/6): Bob Seger & The Silver Bullet Band
#507 (7/12-13): Donovan
#508 (7/19-20): Rolling Stones
#509 (7/26-27): Traveling Wilburys

The Acoustic Storm 500

2008-05-06T15:24:00.000-07:00

May is here and that means the 500th Acoustic Storm is right around the corner. Not that it was a race to get there, but the landmark program just happens to arrive on the same date as the Indianapolis 500, on May 25.

On the 500th show, Bruce Springsteen goes into the Eye of The Storm, and we'll remember E Street Band keyboardist Danny Federici with an acoustic version of "Thunder Road" from the legendary 1975 Hammersmith Odeon concert in London. You'll also hear an acoustic demo of "Born in the U.S.A." from Springsteen's home-recording sessions for the "Nebraska" album, a live take on "Born to Run" and something from the latest album, "Magic."

Since The A.S. 500 falls on Memorial Day weekend, we'll play some songs for the occasion, including David Bowie's unplugged performance of "Heroes" and a beautiful rendition of "My County 'Tis of Thee" from David Crosby and Graham Nash, featuring guitar from the late Michael Hedges.

The annual Mother's Day Acoustic Storm is coming up this weekend (5/10-5/11). Jefferson Airplane-Starship's extended music family will go into the Eye of The Storm, with a taste of Jorma Kaukonen and Jack Cassidy's Hot Tuna. Plus, we've got music from moms like Joni Mitchell, Chrissie Hynde of the Pretenders, and Nancy Wilson of Heart. The theme of maternal acoustic-rock will continue with a trio of tunes from The Beatles, along with Pink Floyd's "Mother," and Randy Newman's original recording of "Mama Told Me Not to Come."

On a personal note, the 5/11 Acoustic Storm is dedicated to Lynne T. Parets. My mother passed away last year and May 11th is her birthday. A lot of my musical inspiration comes from Mom as well as my maternal grandparents. Nana was an accomplished concert pianist and violinist, while Papa was a gifted opera singer.

By the way, if you have any suggestions for the Mother's Day Acoustic Storm or the Father's Day show coming up 6/14-6/15, feel free to drop me a line at jp@acousticstorm.com .

Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers get the Storm profile treatment 5/17-5/18, as they're scheduled to return to the road May 30 (Steve Winwood is the opening act for several dates). Petty has also been busy reviving his old band Mudcrutch with an album and tour.

Here's the upcoming line-up for The Acoustic Storm:

5/10-5/11: Jefferson Airplane/Starship music family (Mother's Day show)
5/17-5/18: Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers
5/24-5/25: Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band (Acoustic Storm 500th show)
5/31-6/1: Steely Dan
6/7-6/8: Neil Young
6/14-6/15: Eric Clapton - including bands he helped father (Father's Day show)

Thanks for your support in making 500 Acoustic Storms possible!

You can view archived listener posts at The Acoutic Storm Forum .

Earth Day Acoustic Storm

2008-04-19T11:50:00.000-07:00

This weekend, the Storm will revolve around the Earth with an environment of acoustic-rock, including "eco-tracks" from Paul McCartney ("Mother Nature's Son), Neil Young ("After the Goldrush"), Joni Mitchell ("Big Yellow Taxi") and even Marvin Gaye ("Mercy Mercy Me, The Ecology"). Of course, there will also be some sub-themes, like songs about the rain and songs about the wind. So help us think about Ma Nature this weekend on the Earth Day edition of The Acoustic Storm.

The Storm Springs Forward

2008-03-23T21:42:00.000-07:00

The vernal equinox has arrived...basically spring has sprung. So we'll celebrate with some springtime acoustic rock on the 3/29-3/30 Acoustic Storm, including a song to start baseball season and some cameo (audio) appearances from MLB'ers past and present. Since it's almost April Fool's Day, "The Joker" goes into the Eye of The Acoustic Storm with Steve Miller in words and music.

As long as we're looking ahead, here are some other upcoming artists in the Eye of The Storm:

4/5-4/6: John Fogerty & CCR
4/12-4/13: Billy Joel
4/19-4/20: Bob Dylan (Earth Day theme)
4/26-4/27: Stephen Stills & CSN

Donovan Comes to Town

2008-02-10T15:48:00.001-08:00

Donovan made a rare concert appearance in Phoenix Feb. 6 with a solo, acoustic performance at the historic Orpheum Theatre.

With just his shiny green acoustic guitar and trademark vibrato vocal, the Scottish troubadour put on a highly entertaining show by revisiting much of his rich catalogue of songs. He played the hits, but also performed several deeper tracks, often tapping his Celtic ancestry.

Launching into some of his earliest compositions without fanfare, Donovan rendered faithful renditions of "Catch the Wind" and "To Try for the Sun" (which, by the way, was recently recorded by Lindsey Buckingham).

He warmed up the humorous side of his storytelling with an introduction to a Scottish pirate song called "Henry Martin," noting the similarities between Johnny Depp in "Pirates of the Caribbean" and the Stones' Keith Richards.

On a more serious note, Donovan memorialized the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, his long-time spiritual advisor, who had passed away the day before at the age of 91 in the Netherlands. 40 years ago this month, Donovan ventured to the Maharishi's Meditation Academy in India with The Beatles, the Beach Boys' Mike Love and jazz musician Paul Horn to study transcendental meditation.

Before performing "Hurdy Gurdy Man" as a musical tribute, Donovan told the audience, "a dear friend, the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi has dropped his body to move on, but has left a great legacy, a wonderful meditation program. This song is dedicated to all the students of the teachings of this Yogi."

A peace warrior since the early '60s, Donovan updated a couple of anti-war songs with references to the Iraqi conflict; Buffy Sainte-Marie's "Universal Soldier" and his own composition from the Vietnam era, "To Susan on the West Coast Waiting."

Other song highlights included "Sunny Goodge Street;" "Jennifer Juniper;" "Wear Your Love Like Heaven;" "Lalena;" "Eldorado;" "Season of the Witch" and "Atlantis."

He saved his biggest hits for the end of the show with inspired versions of "Sunshine Superman" and "Mellow Yellow," while wrapping up the night with his encore, the jaunty "There is a Mountain."

The following morning, I had the opportunity to interview Donovan at his hotel in downtown Phoenix. Not surprisingly, I discovered that not only is he a great artist, but a terrific person as well.

You can hear Donovan's tribute to the Maharishi leading into an unplugged version of "Hurdy Gurdy Man" on next weekend's Acoustic Storm (2/23-2/24).

That same weekend, we'll be featuring our annual "Silver Screen Acoustic Storm" with acoustic rock from the movies. Since The Beatles had their fair share of cinematic experience, we'll profile the Fab Four in the Eye of The Storm. I hope you can join me then...

Kicking Off February

2008-02-01T20:53:00.000-08:00

It's always a lot of fun to find acoustic versions of songs you've never heard before. A couple of weeks ago, my old radio friend Lee Powell sent me the CD-single of "On the Way Home," a live, acoustic version of the Buffalo Springfield classic from Neil Young's forthcoming "NYA Performance Series Vol. 1: The Riverboat." You may have heard me play that track on last week's show when Neil was the featured artist in the Eye of The Acoustic Storm. The latest volume of Neil Young's archival series captures some of his earliest live recordings at the Toronto coffeehouse, The Riverboat.

I'm also looking forward to spinning tunes from a soon-to-be released acoustic album by Pat Benatar, plus previously-undiscovered acoustic versions from The Fixx, as well as Little Feat, courtesy of the band's Paul Barrere & Fred Tackett.
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The Acoustic Storm will be "kicking off" February with a couple of songs for this Sunday's Super Bowl teams. The NFL's ultimate game is being played in The Acoustic Storm's backyard in Glendale, Arizona. So we'll play Jackson Browne with "I Am a Patriot" for New England and Billy Joel's 2006 live performance of "New York State of Mind" for the Giants.

Also on this weekend's show...live Pink Floyd, The Beatles with a vocal demo from "Abbey Road," Ray Davies of the Kinks with an acoustic take on a British Invasion classic, and some nifty acoustic work from 6 & 12 string guitar wizard Leo Kottke. Plus, Elton John goes into the Eye of The Storm.
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On a sad note, the music world lost a fine singer-songwriter January 19th with the passing of John Stewart. John's career got underway in 1961 when he replaced Dave Guard in the Kingston Trio. As the folk scene gave way to rock in the late '60s, Stewart continued to write songs. In fact, he penned "Daydream Believer," which hit the top of the charts for the Monkees.

John Stewart really came into his own as a solo artist. After meeting and marrying fellow folk singer Buffy Ford, he released his solo debut, 1969's "California Bloodlines." He recorded it live in the studio in Nashville, while across the hall Dylan was recording "Nashville Skyline." Other critically-acclaimed John Stewart albums include "Willard," "Cannons in the Rain," and "Wingless Angels."

He often performed in Phoenix, Arizona and became one of the Valley's most popular artists in the mid 1970's. In fact, John Stewart recorded "The Phoenix Concerts" at Symphony Hall in 1974.

Teaming up with Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham, Stewart released the album "Bombs Away Dream Babies" in 1979, featuring "Gold," which reached #5 on the singles chart. Two other tracks from that album, "Midnight Wind" and "Lost Her in the Sun," would also hit the top 40. It was around that time that I interviewed John Stewart live on K-104 (KIOG-FM/KQXE-AM) in Phoenix.

Stewart's later success mostly came as a songwriter. Nanci Griffith, Rosanne Cash, Mary Chapin Carpenter and Joan Baez are among the artists that have recorded his material in recent years.

The Acoustic Storm will remember John Stewart on this weekend's show, with one of his best-loved songs, "July, You're a Woman."

2007: The Year in Acoustic Rock

2007-12-29T16:47:00.000-08:00

It turned out to be a pretty good year for acoustic rock, with legendary artists releasing new studio efforts and music from the archives. Here are a few of the albums released in 2007 that we've been playing on The Acoustic Storm (listed in chronological order):

Neil Young - Live at Massey Hall 1971
3/13/07 (Reprise)
Practically a hometown performance in Toronto, this concert captures Neil solo, live and acoustic. Among the set's highlights are the premiere of "Old Man" more than a year before it would appear on the "Harvest" album, and a powerful, stripped-down treatment of "Ohio" just months after the CSNY studio release. It's worth paying a bit more to get the entire CD-DVD package that includes the concert video.

Paul McCartney - Memory Almost Full
6/5/07 (Hear Music)
Sir Paul reflects on his rich musical past and even slips in a medley as if to reference "Abbey Road." The acoustic album-opener "Dance Tonight is a simple tune that might get stuck in your head, if your "memory" isn't already full. A deluxe edition was issued late in the year with extra live tracks recorded at the Electric Ballroom in London. Speaking of live McCartney, A&E recently televised a 2007 Macca concert at the Olympia in Paris. Paul played acoustic versions of "Blackbird", "Michelle," "Dance Tonight" and "Calico Skies."

Jon Anderson - Live from La La Land
6/25/07 (Opio Media)
The lead vocalist for Yes recorded this show at the Roxy in Los Angeles and released it on his own label as an import. Still in fine voice, Anderson accompanies himself on acoustic guitar and performs Yes classics like "Roundabout," "Owner of a Lonely Heart and "Yours is No Disgrace."

Stephen Stills - Just Roll Tape
7/10/07 (Rhino)
In late April, 1968, Stills had just finished producing some sessions in New York for then-girlfriend Judy Collins when he decided to lay down some all-acoustic tracks of his own. The demos include the first-ever recordings of the CSN standards "Suite Judy Blue Eyes" (dedicated to Collins), "Wooden Ships," and "Helplessly Hoping," as well as Stills' solo material like "Change Partners" and "So Begins the Task."

Mark Knopfler - Kill to Get Crimson
9/18/07 (Warner Bros)
Dire Straits' main-man Knopfler has been releasing quality solo albums for several years now. In typical fashion, the latest album features his distinctive, elegant guitar style and rich, baritone vocals. The opening track, "True Love Will Never Fade" is a nice acoustic number.

Joni Mitchell - Shine
9/25/07 (Hear Music)
Joni came out of retirement to put together this fine collection of tunes. Several songs underscore her strong feelings about what has happened to the environment. Some of the instrumentation reminds me of the "Court and Spark" album. Check out Joni's re-recorded version of "Big Yellow Taxi."

Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band - Magic
10/2/07 (Columbia)
His first release with the E Street Band since 2002's "The Rising" finds Springsteen at the top of his game. Some tracks echo Bruce's love of '60s rock and roll, but the production is very much 2007. The acoustic-based songs are the title track and the CD's hidden track, "Terry's Song," Springsteen's memorial to his long-time assistant and friend, Terry Magovern.

Robert Plant & Alison Krauss - Raising Sand
10/23/07 (Rounder)
What a year for Robert Plant...the Led Zeppelin reunion concert in London and this unique collaboration with bluegrass star Alison Krauss. The duo's vocals blend together well and the track selection is varied as Plant & Krauss cover the Everly Brothers, Tom Waits, Gene Clark and Townes Van Zandt. One of the tracks, "Please Read the Letter," also appears on "Walking into Clarksdale" which Plant released in 1995 with his Zeppelin bandmate Jimmy Page.

Eagles - Long Road Out of Eden
10/30/07 (Eagles Recording Company)
The 28-year hiatus between studio albums was worth the long wait for Eagles' fans. The band went from 1979's "The Long Run" to 2007's "Long Road Out of Eden" with just 1994's live release "Hell Freezes Over" in between. Acoustic stand-outs include "Waiting in the Weeds", "Center of the Universe" and "No More Walks in the Wood."

James Taylor - One Man Band
11/13/07 (Hear Music)
Sweet Baby James sounds as good as ever on this acoustic effort, recorded at the Colonial Theatre in Pittsfield, Massachusetts, not too far from Taylor's home in the Berkshires. The usual suspects are all here, including "Fire and Rain," "You've Got a Friend," "Carolina in My Mind" and "Country Road." It's also nice to hear "Something in the Way She Moves" which dates back to his first album.

Here's looking forward to a great '08 for acoustic rock!

Check out Acoustic Storm listener posts from the past on The Acoustic Storm Web site.

Remembering Dan Fogelberg

2007-12-22T17:21:00.000-08:00

Although I knew Dan Fogelberg had been battling prostate cancer since 2004, I was hoping he would beat it, so it was very sad to hear about his passing last Sunday.

Fogelberg was one of the finest singer-songwriters to emerge in the early '70s. His musical output was impressive, with albums like "Home Free," "Souvenirs," "Netherlands," "Twin Sons of Different Mothers" (with flutist Tim Weisberg) , "Phoenix" and "The Innocent Age."

I saw Fogelberg perform live at Gammage Auditorium in Tempe, Arizona in his prime and I was impressed with his versatility. Everyone knows how fine a balladeer Dan was, but he also knew how to rock and was an excellent guitarist. And what vocals...Jackson Browne recently said DF had the voice of an "angel."

I've been reading some of the condolences on the Dan Fogelberg Web site. Before he passed, Dan posted a sobering message about the importance of men getting prostate exams before it's too late.

You may have also heard that Stephen Stills was recently diagnosed with prostate cancer. It was detected early and signs are hopeful. He'll be undergoing surgery January 4th, so here's wishing Stephen a speedy recovery.

By the way, we'll pay tribute to Dan Fogelberg the weekend of 12/29-12/30 by featuring him in the Eye of The Storm.

An Acoustic Storm Christmas

2007-12-15T17:53:00.000-08:00

The past week or so, I've been busy putting together the annual holiday special, "An Acoustic Storm Christmas."

The show will air on our radio affiliates the weekend of 12/22-12/23. Check the Acoustic Storm Stations page of the Web site for the broadcast schedule in your area. Keep in mind that many Storm stations now stream the show, so even if you're not within range of a Storm radio signal, you can still tune in on-line.

By the way, several non-affiliates will be running the three-hour version of the show as part of their holiday programming on Christmas Eve and/or Christmas Day.

Most of An Acoustic Storm Christmas will consist of holiday acoustic rock classics like John Lennon's "Happy Xmas/War is Over" and ELP's "I Believe in Father Christmas," but you'll also hear some tunes that weren't necessarily written for December 25th, but still fit the spirit of the season like The Beatles' "All You Need is Love" and "Give a Little Bit" from Roger Hodgson of Supertramp, live and acoustic in Montreal.

Speaking of The Beatles, it was a lot of fun finding those Christmas messages and music the Fab Four recorded for their fan club in the early '60s. The records are a little scratchy, but that only adds to the nostalgia factor. Be listening for those hard-to-find audio treats as well on An Acoustic Storm Christmas.

Thanks to dan and caleb for the comments on my last post. Dan, I will be playing a rare, live-acoustic version of Jackson Browne's "The Rebel Jesus" in the first hour of An Acoustic Storm Christmas.

Caleb, your suggestion for linking selections from the weekly Acoustic Storm playlist to a place to purchase music is an idea we've kicked around the last couple of years. Hopefully, sometime in the new year we can put that together to make it easier for Storm listeners to find much of the music they hear on the show.

For an archive of listener comments on acoustic rock and the radio show itself, here's a link to The Acoustic Storm Forum.

I hope you'll take time out of your busy holiday season to unplug and unwind with The Acoustic Storm!

December Already

2007-12-01T20:36:00.001-08:00

It's hard to believe another year is flying past. Here in the Phoenix area, it feels like winter with two straight days of heavy rain and some strong winds. It seems like within a week and a half, we went from very warm 5pm afternoons to chilly, blustery it's getting dark so early-in-the-afternoon kind of weather. I guess the storm changed all that.

Okay, so it's a bit of an obvious segue into talking about The Acoustic Storm, but there's plenty to look forward to this month on the radio show.

This weekend, we'll warm things up with some good 'ol Southern acoustic-rock as the Allman Brothers go into the Eye of The Storm, including a couple of live unplugged performances from Gregg Allman, a beautiful acoustic instrumental from the late, great Duane Allman and the timeless tune, "Melissa" from the "Eat a Peach" album.

Next weekend (12/8-12/9), Stevie Nicks makes her featured debut in the Eye of The Storm, with not only her solo material and acoustic demos with Fleetwood Mac, but a track from the hard-to-find "Buckingham-Nicks" album that got them discovered by Mick Fleetwood.

The Rolling Stones make their way into The Eye the weekend of 12/15-12/16, and then comes one of the most popular Acoustic Storms of the year.

The weekend of 12/22-12/23, we'll celebrate the holidays with "An Acoustic Storm Christmas." You'll hear the usual suspects like "Santa Claus is Comin' to Town" from Springsteen and "Christmas Song" by Jethro Tull, but we'll also feature some rarely-heard acoustic and unplugged versions of Christmas rock classics. There'll be a double-bill in the Eye of The Storm as Jon Anderson of Yes and Greg Lake of ELP share their Christmas memories. Plus, you'll hear vintage Beatles' Christmas greetings and music from their fan club records.

By the way, if you're looking for The Acoustic Storm Forum , it's still available...only now it's an archive, so you can continue to enjoy reading some great posts and replies from the past.

Feel free to leave a comment on this blog, it's always great to hear from you...

Eagles New CD Finally Flies

2007-11-18T21:07:00.000-08:00

On last weekend's Acoustic Storm, I played "No More Walks in the Wood" from "Long Road Out of Eden," the Eagles' first studio release in 28 years. Their previous studio effort had been 1979's "The Long Run," so it has been a long run between albums, indeed. Since this is a double CD, maybe the Eagles have made up for lost time.

Eagles fans I've heard from seem to be genuinely enjoying "Long Road Out of Eden." The band will go into the Eye of the Storm on the 11/24-11/25 Acoustic Storm as we'll hear some comments from Glenn Frey. Besides the live, acoustic version of "Hotel California," you'll hear "Waiting in the Weeds," a highlight from the new release.

Check out the "Long Road Out of Eden" CD review by Larry Coffman, a contributing writer to AcousticStorm.com.

Welcome to The Acoustic Storm Blog

2007-11-11T12:02:00.000-08:00

This is the sequel to the Acoustic Storm Forum, which still exists in archived form at
The Acoustic Storm Web site.

Due to a glut of spam, we had to shut down the free response mechanism on the Forum, although you can still read some great posts from the past.

So here's a fresh start to get the "acoustic conversation" going again. The main purpose of this blog will be to explore acoustic-rock and The Acoustic Storm radio program. Looking forward to your feedback...