Friends & Legends with Skip Martin
Host: Skip Martin
Summary:
Skip Martin and Andre O'Neil pick up where Part 1 left off, and the stories keep coming. Andre tells how Luther Vandross blamed him for walking across the stage at Atlanta's Fox Theatre when it was actually Bobby Brown, then stopped sound check the next day to apologize in front of everyone, and called him Bobby for the last two weeks of the tour. He remembers adjusting Flea's truss rod on the stairs up to the stage before the Red Hot Chili Peppers opened for the Rolling Stones at the Rose Bowl, and how Prince named him The Phantom after a string change so fast Prince never saw it happen. Skip shares how a Pac-Man machine led to Joystick, and Andre runs through Ian Hunter and Mick Ronson, John Waite and Cheap Trick, quitting Pat Benatar the same day he got the job, three weeks in South Africa building Whitney Houston's set, the day Felicia Collins got the call to join David Letterman's band, the Go-Go's and Belinda Carlisle, and working Luther and Mary J. Blige on the same festival bill. Skip's verdict: this has to be a book.
Main Topics:
Luther Vandross and the Bobby Brown mix-up
Luther stops sound check to apologize
Pac-Man, Joystick and the stage pass
Flea's truss rod on the fourth stair at the Rose Bowl
Prince names him The Phantom
Ian Hunter, Mick Ronson and Mott the Hoople
John Waite, Cheap Trick and the empty amphitheaters
Getting and quitting the Pat Benatar job on the same day
Building Whitney Houston's set in South Africa
Felicia Collins and the call from the Letterman band
The Go-Go's and Belinda Carlisle
Luther and Mary J. Blige on the same bill
Intriguing Quotes:
"I owe Andre an apology." - Luther Vandross, as Andre remembers it
"When you're dealing with a star... the star is right." - Andre O'Neil
"I carried my truss rod and wrench in my underwear by my navel, so that you're not gonna catch me off guard." - Andre O'Neil
"You really need to take what we're doing right now and make a biographical book on this." - Skip Martin
Key Moments:
[00:00] Skip welcomes Andre back for Part 2
[00:44] John Waite and the Cheap Trick tour
[01:12] Guitar tech for Luther Vandross
[02:30] Bobby Brown walks across Luther's stage
[03:10] "Why did you walk across my stage?"
[05:32] Luther's apology
[05:53] Luther starts calling him Bobby
[06:17] Pac-Man, Joystick and the stage pass
[08:23] Bass tech for Flea
[10:11] The truss rod on the fourth stair
[10:56] Training for a job with Prince
[12:52] Prince names him The Phantom
[13:30] Ian Hunter and Mick Ronson
[15:27] John Waite and John Cafferty
[16:11] Cheap Trick and the empty amphitheaters
[16:55] Skip says write the book
[17:29] Pat Benatar and Eddie Money on the same day
[19:21] Forgetting the biggest names
[20:12] Building Whitney Houston's set in South Africa
[24:30] Three weeks at Radio City Music Hall
[25:11] Cyndi Lauper and Felicia Collins
[26:49] The Go-Go's and Belinda Carlisle
[27:24] Luther and Mary J. Blige on the same bill
[28:53] Don't play no games
Notable Resources:
Fox Theatre, Atlanta
Red Hot Chili Peppers and the Rolling Stones at the Rose Bowl
Ian Hunter, "Cleveland Rocks"
Whitney Houston's HBO special from South Africa
Cyndi Lauper, Hat Full of Stars tour
The Dazz Band, "Joystick"
Connect with Skip Martin:
Website: https://www.skipmartinmusic.com/
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/skipmartinmusic
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/skipmartinmusic/
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/skipmartinmusic
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/skipmartinmusic
Watch Every Episode of Friends & Legends with Skip Martin:
YouTube Playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLV1sm5Ou1dv5BtxzWFV3Wq8jxDi17jNhJ