Rock And Roll Confessional

CW West
  • 4.9 (132)
  • MUSIC COMMENTARY
  • UPDATED BIMONTHLY

Rock and Roll Confessional is a podcast for Rock music fans. Those that love music, but are not in the industry, yet want to hear the stories that shaped the world of music. We interview not only musicians and song writers, but promoters, DJs, venue management, agents and more.

  1. 15H AGO

    Lawrence Gowan keyboardist & vocalist for Styx, talks new tours, his musical career and auditioning for Pete Townsend

    In 1997, during Styx's tour, Lawrence Gowan's band performed as a supporting act for Styx at Montreal's Molson Center and Quebec City's Colisee. Tommty Shaw admired his talent and vibrant stage charisma and called him in May 1999 asking him to tour with them for 53 dates, temporarily replacing their lead singer, Dennis DeYoung who had fallen ill. Lawrence permaentaly replaced the lead singer after the tour.  Styx had long been plagued by differences in artistic inclination. DeYoung's absence created an opportunity for a more premanent restructuring of Styx. Lawrence subsequently became the band's permanent vocalist. This year, Styx' current tour includes Cheap Trick and later this summer, the "Windy Cities" tour begins with Chicago and Styx.  As always for our show notes, please visit our website: www.rockandrollconfessional.rocks Also we ask that you rate and subscribe the podcast where ever you can.

    48 min

  2. APR 16

    Heavy Metal author Martin Popoff's new book: KISS '76 - 12 Months That Defined The Hottest Band In The Land.

    Our latest guest is Martin Popoff who is the author of over 100 books on hard rock, heavy metal, classic rock and record collecting , bringing both archival depth and fan-first storytelling. Today we are speaking with Martin about his new book: "KISS '76". KISS was formed in 1973, and was one of the hardest-working bands in rock, releasing three studio albums and their breakthrough Alive! album in 1974, setting the stage for a true breakthough into superstardom. Fifty years on, Marting frames the band's nonstop momentum in 1976 - two landmark studio albums, a relentless touring schedule, and the birth of the KISS Army fan club. Written with the fan's eye and the historian's rigor, KISS '76 follows the band around the world into the studio, paring the detailed album analysis with on-the-road reportage and archival discoveries. As Martin puts it in the prolougue, "This is the Story of 1976 by someone with way too much KISS on the brain", A voice that gives the book its affectionate, insider engergy while nebver losing sight of the year's bigger picture. Show notes and additional episodes can be found on our website: www.rockandrollconfessional.rocks

    47 min

  3. MAR 12

    Gil Moore, founding member, singer and drummer for Triumph talks about the band reuniting and touring for the first time in 30 years.

    Triumph formed in Toronto, Ontario, in 1975 after a chance meeting led Rik Emmett, Mike Levine and Gil Moore to embark on a marathon jam session. They immediately decided to form a band and the debut album "Triumph" was released in 1976. With hits like: Lay It On The Line, Magic Power, and Never Surrender, The Canadian power trio stands out as a visionary with soaring melodies and exceptional songs with a postitive perspective and outstanding live shows which propelled vocalist/guitarist Rik Emmett, bas guitarist/keyboardist Mike Levine and vocalist/drummer Gil Moore to stardom.  It's been 30 years since the band has toured together and now, original founding member of the band, Gil Moore, joins us to talk about what it's like to reunite and get ready for this amazing upcoming tour. The band heads out to the East Coast and Canada mid April. Show notes can be found on our website: www.rockandrollconfessional.rocks

    51 min

  4. MAR 3

    Rita and CW reminisce on the passing of one of the finest DJs in Southern California, Uncle Joe Benson

    Over the last week, Southern California lost of the of the great DJs, "Uncle" Joe Benson. Uncle Joe was on KLSX, The Sound, Arrow and 95.5 KLOS. Rita and CW Both worked with Joe for many years. Unfortunately the mystery of life moved Joe onto different pastures in the past week. This is just a very brief show talking about how Joe includenced not only Rita and CW, but the radio listeners.  If you are interested in some of the other interviews we did with DJs that Rita and CW worked with, we suggest that you listen to our show with KLOS' morning show: Mark and Brian or our show with the legendary Steve Downes.  More radio shows can be found on YouTube or where every you find great podcasts!

    10 min

  5. 12/23/2025

    Ted Lekas, former producer of KLOS' Mark & Brian show talks about the highlights of the past Christmas Shows

    As the executive producer of KLOS' legendary Mark & Brian Show, Ted Lekas' typical day encouplassed managing talent, publicists, reporters, promotions, researching news stories and celebrity gossip, coordinating ticket give-aways, website promotions and booking guests. He led a daily brainstorming seassion with the team, contributing ideas for new sketches, show segments and events. The not as typical days were producing events including ten Mark & Brian Christmas Variety Shows, remote broadcasts and live Amphithetare shows that headlined the likes of Bon Jovi, Melissa Etheridge and Foreigner. As Mark  Brian have said, "Ted is a world class producer, he solves problems before they happen, his attention to detail is unparalled, and he never gets flustered." For this holiday season, we thought it would be fun to bring Ted into our studio and discuss his trails and tribulations of putting together the Mark & Brian Christmas Shows and talk about the ups and downs of the highly complicated holiday tradition. And, as a special bonus, we have added a few Mark & Brian holiday bits to the end of the podcast. So stay through the credits for more fun. Find show notes which include videos and photos of past Mark & Brian Christmas Variety Shows. plus links to Ted's website (where you can find the many of the live music performances) at: www.rockandrollconfessional.rocks Rita & CW also featuring Mark & Brian as past guest on the podcast. Listen to those episodes where ever you found this one!

    1h 36m

  6. 11/27/2025

    Derek Smalls, former lead bass player formerly of the band formerly known as Spinal Tap, talks break up & new solo music

    We've got the scoop! First to record it, first to announce it. It's an incredible interview with Derek Smalls, former lead bass player formerly of the band formerly known as Spinal Tap. We have the official announcement! Spinal Tap, which had been together for over 40 years, officially has broken up. Derek is pursuing a solo career with the release of the first of 12 new songs - the first is: R.V.M. (Rear View Mirror). We also get an update on what has happened since the release of "Spinal Tap 2 - The End Continues", including the relationship between Derek and Elton John, the Glue Museum and how the band originally tranistioned from Pop to Heavy Metal. Plus we get to hear about the Saucy Jack musical, the soon to be released live performance at Stonehenge and why Derek, Nigel and David are no longer a band.  Side note: Derek mentions a few musicians that have been previous guests on our podcast, including: Mark Bonilla, Kipp Lennon and a few more. Find those recordings in our archives. For more information and for show notes, visit our website: www.rockandrollconfessional.rocks Derek's site: www.dereksmalls.com

    49 min

  7. 11/06/2025

    Marc Bonilla, guitarist, composer and producer, discusses his many roles in the music, TV & movie industries

    Marc Bonilla is a renowned guitarist, composer, and producer whose dynamic career spans decades across the worlds of rock, film, and television. He first gained recognition touring with Warner Bros. recording artists Toy Matinee and later released three critically acclaimed instrumental guitar albums on Reprise Records: EE Ticket, American Matador, and Celluloid Debris.  A versatile and south-after collaborator, Bonill has performed, recorded and produced with an impressive roster of artists including Asia, Ronnie Montrose, Gamma, Glenn Hughes, Eddie Jobson, Slash, Little Richard, Peter Frampton, Rob Halford, David Coversale, Paul Rodgers, Edgar Winter, Ambrosia, David Pack, Todd Rundgren, Robby Krieger, Don Felder, Sammy Hagar and Tesla, among many others. In the Realm of film and television, Marc has composed and performed on scores for numersous major motion pictures such as The Bourne Legacy, Iron Man 2, Green Lantern, The Scorpion King, Falling Down, Waterworld, The Replacements, Spiderman 2, Bruce Almighty, ER and many more. He has collaborated with top Hollywood composers including James Newton Howard, John Debney, Joel McNeely, and Snuffy Walden, earning an Emmy nomination in 2001 for his work on David Milch's Big Apple. For Show notes and more info, visit our website: www.rockandrollconfessional.rocks Also Marc mentions many of our previoius guests that you may want to hear those interviews, including Lee Sklar, Glenn Hughes, Kipp Lennon, Peter Frampton, Robby Krieger and more. Find those interviews where ever you found this one!   More info on Marc's site: https://marcbonillamusic.com/

    1h 27m

  8. 10/18/2025

    Iron Maiden's 50th is celebrated with Daniel Bukszpan's new book "Iron Maiden At 50"! Featuring 50 iconic milestones in the Iron Maiden's career!

    Few Metal bands havwe achieved Iron Maiden's enduring success - across popularity, musical integrity, and live performance power. Daniel Bukszpan's new book, Iron Maiden At 50, captures this extraordinary five-decade journey in full. Equal parts biography and anniversary tribute, the book chronicles Maiden form inception to global metal juggernaut via 50 pivotal moments that shaped the band's influence and legacy. They story is told indepth, via the landmark albums, historic tours, line up shifts and behind-the-scenes decisioins through the decades.  Daniel's book is more than a timeline - it's a deep dive into Maiden's unmatched drive, evolution, and artistic conviction. From pub gigs to packed stadiums across six continents, Iron Maiden at 50 explores how a working-class band from London became one of the most influencital forces in metal.  For show notes and more information, visit our website: www.rockandrollconfessional.rocks We also have two other interviews with Daniel in our archives including: his books: "Ozzy at 75" and "Rush at 50"

    45 min
See All (100)

4.9
out of 5
132 Ratings

About

Rock and Roll Confessional is a podcast for Rock music fans. Those that love music, but are not in the industry, yet want to hear the stories that shaped the world of music. We interview not only musicians and song writers, but promoters, DJs, venue management, agents and more.

Information

You Might Also Like