Interview: Raiding The Rock Vault - Vegas

Where else but Vegas can you find a collection of Classic Rock Veterans that hail from acts like Heart, Bon Jovi, Whitesnake, Survivor, Bad Company and Starship? The good news is that you don’t have to raid any vault to enjoy an evening of your favorite hits from the people who originally recorded them combined with a healthy dose of classic music from the 60’s, 70’s and 80’s presented in a colorful chronological overview. Here’s the line up that you have to see to believe:

Howard Leese – Guitar (Heart, Bad Company)

Doug Aldrich – Guitar (White Snake)

Robin McAuley – Lead Vocals (MSG, Survivor)

Paul Shortino – Lead Vocals (Rough Cutt, Quiet Riot)

Jay Schellen – Drums (Hurricane, Asia)

Andrew Freeman – Lead Vocals (Offspring)

Michael T. Ross – Keyboards (Lita Ford)

Hugh McDonald – Bass (Bon Jovi, Ringo Starr)

Stephanie Calvert – Lead Vocals (Starship)

Carol-Lyn Liddle – Lead Vocals (Masters of Rock)

It’s often said that Vegas is the place where good music goes to die. As an aging artist myself, I would beg to differ in that classic rock never really dies, it ages like a fine wine. When you have singers and players that maintain their form and abilities, Vegas can provide an excellent platform to reach a genre on a regular basis. The town is a resort destination and obviously there is a demand for great entertainment. Raiding the Rock Vault takes the regular Vegas staple to the next level.

Being able to cover 3 decades worth of hits is a daunting task for anyone. However, I must say that these guys and girls really rise to the occasion. The music is presented within a chronological dramatic framework that connects the repertoire with historical events that were occurring in the corresponding era. You can’t really appreciate Woodstock era music without considering the Vietnam conflict that was occurring simultaneously and some of the unrest in the country. It’s all in context with video interspersed with some comical drama (it is still Vegas…).

The impressive aspect of the musical performance is the duplication of the sounds and tones from song to song. Doug Aldrich and Howard Leese cover the electric guitar work with deft accuracy down to even guitar selection. For Jimi Hendrix stuff, Doug even plays a guitar that looks like Jimi’s lefty set up. Of course for Led Zep, Doug plays a double-necked 12 string/6 string combo. These guys match the licks and leads note for note. Even though Doug came into the business on the backend of Whitesnake and Dio success, he cut his teeth on this classic rock and plays it like the veteran he is.

For a guy who has seriously lived the rock and roll dream, Doug is really very down to earth and approachable. We chatted for almost and hour with him actually taking the time to call me back twice as inevitable interruptions came. He presents as a guy who realizes that he’s been blessed with a great opportunity.

Interestingly, Aldrich has never received any extended period of formal guitar instruction.

As he mentioned, Doug moved to LA in the real heyday of rock scene around Sunset Boulevard. The clubs like the Roxy, Whiskey and the Goldrush were teaming with talented and creative musicians. Aldrich never really had to play in cover bands like many musicians on the way up do.

Doug would go on to tour with Whitesnake for over 12 years and become a widely respected rock guitarist. He’s really happy to be off the road and working in one location on a nightly basis.

It’s this life outlook that serves Aldrich very well. When asked if he might have some wise advice for an aspiring shredder, he shares insight that certainly reflects an unflappable perspective.

SNEAK PEAK BEHIND THE AMP RACK

The endearing thing about Doug Aldrich is that he still has genuine awe for creating music. It’s refreshing to talk to someone who still appreciates the mystique and privilege of making music as a professional. Doug still has much to contribute to his craft and you will always enjoy an amazing performance when you see him in a show.

Of course, Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Howard Leese has been playing much of this music since it’s creation in the 70’s. The California native was a member of the band Heart from the mid 70’s when they created their breakthrough debut Dreamboat Annie. Hit songs like “Crazy on You” and “Magic Man” thrust the band into platinum sales and spot lighted not only Howard’s guitar work but thick soaring analog synths. He toured with Heart for over 20 years and still tours intermittently with Paul Rogers and Bad Company when not Raiding the Vault. While he might pushing the range of when the average fellow is considering retirement, 6 nights a week Leese demonstrates that he’s just getting his second wind as a lead guitarist and musical director of Raiding the Rock Vault.

Male lead vocals are split between Robin McAulley, Paul Shortino and Andrew Freeman with female leads being covered by Stephanie Calvert (Starship) and Vegas native Carol-Lin Liddle. Lead vocals from this era of music present any vocalist with a challenging range to cover. These vets do it all night. McAuley has been singing hard rock in bands like MSG and Survivor for years so this collection of songs is right in his comfort zone.  When I spoke to Robin, he related a that his foray into lead vocals was rather indirect.

RM – “Getting started in the Irish music scene, I had originally planned to be a drummer and perhaps sing backing vocals. I realized quickly that there were many better drummers than I could amount to be and focused on singing as well.”

Robin would soon begin covering lead vocal responsibilities in associated bands and eventually become the front man in a signed band that enjoyed substantial radio play – Grand Prix. Grand Prix would tour the European metal scene and even garnered an opening slot for Iron Maiden. He attracted the attention of Michael Schenker, a noted rocker who offered him a position in his band that would eventually become the McAuley Schenker Group and gain substantial critical success in rock circles. Robin credits Schenker and his producer, Frankie for teaching him a great deal about versatility and rock showmanship.

Robin would eventually be invited to join Survivor from his association with producer Frank.

Although having been primarily a metal singer, Robin found the Survivor slot a great opportunity.

Rock Vault really presents especially the singers with the difficult task of covering iconic songs that were sung by iconic singers and stylists. I asked Robin how he approaches this on a nightly basis.

Likewise with Paul Shortino, his tenure in Quiet Riot and Rough Cutt make his contribution to the vocals of the night memorable and enjoyable. Andrew Freeman and Stephanie Calvert bring a fresh take on some classic rock and roll lead vocals. Andrew was a member of the punk rock band The Offspring. By the time Freeman began touring with the band, they were at the apex of their radio success and literally playing arenas around the world.

Although much of the repertoire from the show was recorded before Andrew was even born, he still brings an amazingly relevant interpretation of his songs each night.

This definitely shows up in Andrew’s contribution to each nights performance. He’s an extremely competent front man and engages the crowd in anthem rock form with natural ease. This is the case from top to bottom with the Rock Vault staff in terms of their ability to handle to flow professionally.

It’s truly impressive that these younger members of the cast are able to step right into big shoes and represent this great collage of rock and roll standards with such ease. Stephanie Calvert (Starship) is perhaps one of the younger members of the cast but is still touring with Mickey Thomas and Starship. She fills the incredibly big shoes of Grace Slick in the Starship show.

In the current lineup of Raiding the Rock Vault, Stephanie has the opportunity to sing lead vocals on another iconic female rocker song - “Alone” by Heart and Ann Wilson.

Having toured with Starship for over 8 years now, Stephanie brings great poise and passion to the Rock Vault show. She reminds the crowd that rock and roll is not just a man’s world.

When asked if she had any sage advice for an up and coming female rocker, she had this great insight to share.

Stephanie is most definitely carving out her own history through Starship and Rock Vault. She brings a memorable flair to the show when she is not on the road with Starship a little over 50 nights per year to the nightly approval of all in attendance. Carol-Lin Liddle, best know for her participation in the Vegas production Masters of Rock fills out the lead vocal duties.

The rhythm section of the Rock Vault band brings some veteran chops to the show. Hugh McDonald of Bon Jovi fame plows a deep groove on bass guitar. As Jon Bonjovi takes some time off from touring, it gives Vegas crowds an opportunity to hear Hugh stretch out with this repertoire. Michael T. Ross of Lita Ford and Missing Persons ilk covers the broad spectrum of keyboard responsibilities. No different than the demand on a guitarist for the varieties of guitar tones over three decades of music is the demand on a keyboardist to travel from Rhodes and Hammond to the analog synth sounds of the 70’s and 80’s. Jay Schellen formerly of Hurricane and Asia contributes a deft performance on the drum kit traveling across multiple genres and a collection of iconic drummers and sounds.

This show that runs five nights a week at the all new Tropicana is one of the highest rates shows on the strip and it’s easy to see why. The producers have assembled an all star cast and a phenomenal show that pumps some life into some classic rock hits. Raiding the Rock Vault proves that Vegas is the place where music goes to be revitalized and represented in all of it’s glory.

To find out more about Raiding the Rock Vault or to purchase tickets for the show, visit here.

_{Chris Marion is an American musician best known as a member of Little River Band and for his contribution to the gospel and country music industries. Although graduating college with a B.A. in Psychology, he is a classically trained pianist and has worked in the music industry professionally for over 35 years. As a resident of Nashville, he is involved in the recording industry working in the genres of Gospel, Country and Rock.  Since 2004, he has toured globally with the classic rock act Little River Band as a keyboardist and vocalist.  For more useless trivia and minutiae concerning Chris or to contact him directly, feel free to visit his personal website www.chrismarionmusic.com.}