As it was previously in 2010 and 2011, pitching is once again all the rage now in Major League Baseball. Despite seven no-hitters tossed in 2012 by starting pitchers Homer Bailey, Felix Hernandez, Matt Cain, Kevin Millwood (with the help of five relievers), Johan Santana, Jered Weaver and Phil Humber, it’s the men in the pen that garner most of the over-the-top baseball fanaticism. Leading the late-inning charge of borderline insanity is Aussie closer Grant Balfour of the Oakland Athletics. Often seen dumping water over his head before leaving the bullpen and talking to himself in-between pitches, Balfour’s on-field antics are undoubtedly the most anticipated sight to see in the 2012 MLB playoffs.The Oakland Athletics fans’ traditional ritual of raging before closer Grant Balfour enters the
game has resurrected sleepy baseball crowd participation to electric rock concert proportions. Aussie Grant Balfour is not afraid to express himself.The raging thunder from ‘Down Under’ was called upon by A’s manager Bob Melvin in five tightly-contested games on five consecutive days to lead Oakland to the American League West Division title. Balfour’s stellar late season hitless pitching insured the A’s sweep of the Mariners and Rangers. The six-foot-two, 34-year-old Sydney native threw an inning per day and retired all 15 batters faced–which extended his streak of putting consecutive batters away to 26. He is just one of two Australian professional players to compete in a World Series as a member of the 2008 American League Champion Tampa Bay Rays and is in a perfect position to get another crack at taking home a World Series ring in 2012 with the A’s.Grant Balfour sprays Oakland A’s fans after winning the 2012 American League West Division.
A’s Derek Norris and Grant Balfour Since August 11th, Grant Balfour has converted all 17 of his save opportunities while posting a 2.18 ERA, 0.73 WHIP and 26/6 K/BB ratio over 20 2/3 innings. After a three-year stint in Tampa Bay, Balfour signed a two-year contract worth 8.1 million dollars with the Oakland Athletics in January 2011. In his 62 innings of relief for the A’s during 2011, the hard-throwing right-handed hurler struck out 59 hitters and racked up five wins for the third-place Athletics. Acquired by the Rays in July 2007 from the Milwaukee Brewers in a trade sending pitcher Seth McClung to Miller Field, Grant Balfour did not make Tampa Bay’s 2008 Opening Day roster. However, after turning heads at Triple-A Durham and closer Troy Percival being placed on the disabled list early into the season, the Rays sent Ben Zobrist to Durham in exchange for Balfour. Assuming the role of Rays closer for the ailing Troy Percival until mid-July, Balfour ended his regular season campaign with an impressive 6-2 record and a 1.54 ERA.Fellow Aussie Travis Blackley joins Grant Balfour and the A’s post-game celebration.A’s closer Grant Balfour is in the prime of his career.Grant Balfour made his MLB debut back in 2001 for the Minnesota Twins. Having now passed former MLB star Graeme Lloyd on the career strikeout list for Australian-born pitchers, he is the quintessential Aussie baseball patriarch. A’s pitchers Grant Balfour and Travis Blackley have already made baseball history by becoming the first pair of Australian Major League players to compete in the MLB post-season on the same team.Grant Balfour had 24 regular season saves in a career-high 75 games during the 2012 season. The pitching duo of Balfour and Blackley have another opportunity to imprint their names in Aussie baseball history by becoming only the second and third Australians to win a World Series ring. A fairytale ending for Oakland’s Australian connection would be most appropriate as they both have played a major role in the A’s miraculous run to the American League West title and the post-season. Like a fine wine getting better with age, Sydney’s Grant Balfour and Melbourne’s Travis Blackley are at the pinnacle of their careers and are in line to catapult the underdog to a world championship.
AC/DC, Crowded House, Helen Reddy, Kylie Minogue, Little River Band, and Men At Work are just some of the big names that have sprouted out of Melbourne, Australia. There has never been a drought for world-class talent hailing from the metropolis often referred to as the “cultural capital of Australia” and the world’s most liveable city. Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria.Melbourne-born Michael Balzary AKA “Flea” of LA’s Red Hot Chili Peppers jams the national anthem at Dodger Stadium. Four-year-old Michael “Flea” Balzary moved from Melbourne to New York when his father, a customs officer, was transferred in 1967. Shortly after his parents divorced at age seven, his dad returned to Australia, where he now lives on the outskirts of Canberra with his second wife. Flea’s mother later married American jazz musician Walter Urban Jr. and moved the family to Los Angeles in 1972. Flea would often sit in on weekly jam sessions with his stepdad and the constant flow of musicians who visited. While most of the California high school kids were into disco and dance music, Flea listened to jazz legends Louie Armstrong, Miles Davis and Dizzy Gillespie. His greatest childhood memory was when he met Gillespie backstage after one of his concerts. Flea’s musical interests diversified when he discovered funk music and Jimi Hendrix became his new idol. He befriended Anthony Kiedis in 1977 and the Red Hot Chili Peppers formed after Flea left Fear and declined an offer to join PiLin 1984.Red Hot Chili Peppers guitarist Josh Klinghoffer, LA Lakers center-forward Pau Gasol and FleaWidely known as a devout LA sports fanatic, most people are unaware of Flea’s strong ties to Australia.Flea has a strong connection to his Aussie roots. He professed, “I love Australia with my heart and Australian blood coarses through my veins. We are coming to Australia early next year, can’t wait to feel the connection to my birthplace once again.” The bassist owns a beachfront property in the little town of Congo on NSW’s South Coast. Flea said, “Chances are, I’ll end up living there permanently. Without wanting to sound corny, I feel it in my blood when I’m in that part of Australia. I get a lot of power and strength from the land.” Redhead pitcher Alex Da Silva of
the Melbourne Aces and LA AngelsPower and strength are two attributes commonly referred to when Melbourne Ace and LA Angels pitching prospect Alex Da Silva takes the mound. Signed by the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim international scout Grant Weir as a free agent on January 10, 2011, the 19-year-old Da Silva has a cannon for an arm. Weir commented, “Alex probably throws harder than anyone in the country. Just his tools are impressive.” Equipped with a 90 plus MPH fastball, curveball, change-up and cutter, Da Silva is committed to working hard everyday to realize his dream of making it to Major League Baseball. This past Australian Baseball League season the six-foot-two Aussie hurler was in good hands pitching under the guidance and supervision of Melbourne Ace manager Phil Dale, a former minor league coach for the Cincinnati Reds and Atlanta Braves as well as a national baseball coaching legend for leading the Australian team to its first ever silver medal in the 2004 Athens Olympics with a 1-0 upset over Japan. We checked in with Alex recently.Melbourne’s Alex Da Silva signed a professional contract with Angels scout Grant Weir in 2011.
Roberto: How are things going for you in Tempe, Arizona? Alex: Feeling pretty good at my first Angels Spring Training camp. It’s pretty good. They are very keen on looking after the players so everything is taken care of. I mean from getting picked up in the morning, breakfast, lunch. It’s just a baseball paradise here, you know. Roberto: It’s everything you expected it to be? Alex: And more… Roberto: Reports from Australia are that you pack some heat with your fastball. Is that true? Alex: It’s a bit more like that back home, but over here I am just another fish in the sea. I’m mean, it’s nothing special, really. That’s where I have to develop. I mean, back home, yeah, There are not many guys that throw that hard. Over here, everybody does. I’m just another number. Roberto: But you’re a hard worker committed to a seven-year contract. Alex: Yeah, seven years but at the moment just (taking it) day-by-day.Alex Da Silva played on the 2011-12 Melbourne Aces which included Oakland A’s starter Travis Blackley.Roberto: Playing for Melbourne with Travis Blackley and Shane Lindsay must have been inspirational? Alex: You see how they go about their business and whenever they step on the field it’s always 100% business. It gives you something to go off and something to follow. Especially those guys, they are really good examples to follow. They always give you a nudge in the right direction when you need it. They are really good people to have around. Childhood friend and Melbourne Ace teammate
19-year-old Darryl George is a bright MLB prospect. Roberto: It must have been tough watching the Australian Baseball League Championship between your Melbourne Aces and the Perth Heat? Alex: At the same time as you’re not playing, you’re still kind of there. You know the guys, especially Darryl George when he was getting up. I grew up with him. I know exactly what is going through his head. I’ve seen him do it since he was like 11-years-old. At the same time, you know they are doing everything they can and hopefully in the years to come I’ll be the guy out there.Melbourne Ace pitcher Alex Da Silva Roberto: Did you have a case of the butterflies when you took the mound for the first time in the Australian Baseball League? Alex: I played the very first series in Sydney. That was the only series I played. I came on when we were down to a time limit so I was put on to waste a little bit of time. Yeah, the crowd wasn’t too happy so it was a little bit of a new experience for me. You know, the crowd against me. We were trying to do everything we could do to stretch the game a little bit. It’s a tough situation. Roberto: You played with Chicago Cubs catching prospect Alberto Mineo from Italy at the MLB Australian Academy. What were were impressions of him? Alex: When I first met Alberto, he was one of those really fun guys to be around. Always smilng. His English is actually pretty good, but we still messed around with him a little bit. But he took it in the spirit Italy’s Alberto Mineoit was meant to be. In terms of a catcher, I really like the way he went about his business. He took control of the game. There were times when I wanted to throw a pitch that I wanted to throw, but he insisted and pulled me back in line a little bit. In terms of catchers that I like, I just like catchers that get the job done and don’t say too much. I do my job, and they do their job. Roberto: But do you take things personally when catchers are insisting on a pitch, and you are shaking them off for another? Alex: I’m not a big fan of shaking guys off. Every now and then I might feel that I know a hitter pretty well and the pitch I want to throw might be a bit more effective. When they put the same sign down twice, I always think they’re really persistent on this one so I give them this one. I’ll go with what they say. You might have a bit of a joke about it later if they get a hit off you. Go back to him and say that it should have been a curveball instead of a fastball. I usually just trust what they do. Roberto: Baseball is still in its infancy in Australia. With the abundance of more popular sports on your home turf, what lured you into baseball? Alex: Well there is AFL, Australian Rules Football, but I didn’t like running that much so that kind of put me off it. I tried karate for a little while. I guess I really liked the guys who played baseball. I played with some pretty cool guys growing up. There was just something there that kept me going back every year. I really don’t quite know what is was, but something kept luring me back. Roberto: Who was an inspirational figure in your baseball career? Alex: My very first baseball coach, Greg Dawes, he was a bit of a hard ass. Even little things like everytime you go out there to make sure your shirt is tucked in and your socks are tucked up stuck with me until now. In a way, that’s the way the game should be played. That little bit of respect he taught me for the game carried on. Now I enjoy it much more because I got all that basic stuff out of the way. Now it’s off to the fun stuff in just playing, and I don’t have to worry about it. Roberto: What is the most frustrating part of pitching? Alex: The hardest part for me is when you throw a really good pitch, you’ll throw a curveball that snaps off really well, and the hitter comes up with something. He might get a hit off a curveball that would have bounced before the plate. I mean what things are out of your control are the things that really get to you. So you do your job really well and you hit your spot, but the hitter just does a better job. For me that’s the hardest thing. Or you do your job, you get a guy to roll over and there’s an error in the field. They’re the kind of things that really get me. I mean you’ve done your job, and at the end of the game you’ve got a loss next to your name. They’re the things that really get me. It’s just things that are not in your control is what frustrates me a little bit. Roberto: Is it fun competing with international players abroad? Alex: The two dominant forces here are the Americans and Latins. Americans are very similar to Australians. There is always the language thing. We say ‘mate’. They always make fun of us saying stuff like ‘Hey mate” and things like that. The Latino guys are really cool to be around, they’ll mix in some Spanish. They’ll mess with you a little bit, and you mess with them back. Just the other day we tricked one of the Latino guys into thinking that ‘vamos’ which means ‘let’s go’ meant ‘French toast’. So he is out on the field yelling ‘French toast’ (laughter). There’s really not that much difference culturally. I’ve been told that Tempe, this area, is very similar to Brisbane. It’s like being at home, just a bit drier and not as many hills. Otherwise, it’s very easy to assimilate into this environment. Roberto: Other than the jetlag and the time difference? Alex: Yeah, it was a bit difficult. My flight from Sydney to LA was fourteen hours, and I didn’t sleep a blink. The first couple days were hard. It took me like four days to feel like I was right. That’s going to happen. You’ve got to deal with it. Roberto: It’s part of the game. What’s next for Alex Da Silva? Alex: After spring camp and extended spring, I hope to make a rookie or rookie advanced team from there. I mean, either way,
I don’t really mind so long I am still playing here. That’s the greatest blessing just to be able to come out and play everyday. At this point, it’s spring, extended spring and short-season. Roberto: Is Anaheim in the future? Alex: I just want to get there. It doesn’t matter when. I just want to make the big leagues. That’s why I am here. That’s why I was signed because somebody thought that I could make the big leagues. That’s just what I want to do. Doesn’t matter when, doesn’t matter who for—whether it be Anaheim or New York—it doesn’t matter. I just want to get there. Roberto: Are you looking forward to pitching for the Melbourne Aces in the 2012-13 Australian Baseball League season? Alex: I think by the end of the season, I might want a little break. I might take a couple weeks off, but I would like to play as many series as I can play with them. I would love to go over and play whatever role Melbourne Ace manager Phil Dale puts me into. Really, I would like to play as much baseball as I can.
A visit to Dandenong Ranges National Park and run up Mount Dandenong’s 1000 Steps Kokoda Trail is the reward for Alex Da Silva after a good outing on the mound. Roberto: Any words of encourage or advice for up-and-coming baseball players worldwide? Alex: Never give up. There is always setbacks, but you have got to keep going through the setbacks. I have been lucky. I haven’t had many injuries or anything,
I know some guys that have, and they are still where
I am. The thing is every time you have a setback, you just have got to keep going. Get through, get to the next little bit. Set yourself goals, get to the next little section. For me, my next section is to get through spring healthy and hopefully not giving up too many runs. I don’t expect much from myself at this point, but I mean once I get an idea where I am at extended spring camp then I will set myself some good goals. You know, like I may not want to give up more than one hit for every two innings or something like that. You really have got to set specific goals and when you get those goals—reward yourself! Maybe instead of
just running around your block–you’ll go for a run to the beach. You have always got to have those goals, and at the end of those goals you have got to have a goal to look forward to.Roberto: So have some immediate short-term goals leading to long-term goals? Alex: Yeah, for me where I live at the bottom of the hills there is a place called the 1000 steps. Instead of my normal running, you know, it got a little bit boring so after I had a good outing I would go there. If I was starting, I would say that I wanted to get through five innings and only give up two runs or just be in a leading position coming out when I leave the game. If I got that, then I could go up to the 1000 steps and do my running because it’s a beautiful rainforest which is a bit cooler and a really nice place to run. That was my reward. Or just about anything that I looked forward to. Roberto: What about the growth of Aussie baseball with the injection of the MLB-sponsored Australian Baseball League (ABL) and the MLB Australian Baseball Academy? Alex: In terms of the fanbase, with the ABL in place it has just exploded. It still has a long way to go. As far as the MLB Australian Academy, you can look at how many guys have been signed since the program started… My year alone 12 guys were signed and the year before me was even better. Everyone of them has been through the Academy multiple years. It’s getting the results. Roberto: Any words for your friends and family back home? Alex: Missing you guys. I’m doing you proud! Despite Red Hot Chili Peppers’ Flea and redhead Alex Da Silva ending up on opposing sides of LA baseball, their love for Melbourne is skin deep. On game day when LA Angel pitching prospect Da Silva gets ready for a start, he pumps up the volume with some of his favorite jams from Red Hot Chili Peppers and Rise Against. When Chili Pepper bassist Flea wants to get fired up before a big concert, he watches Matt Kemp and the Los Angeles Dodgers. Regardless how these two individuals mentally prepare for their performances, both are professionals grounded and undeniably connected by their Australian blood.Da Silva’s home away from home at LA Angels of Anaheim Spring Training Complex in Tempe
Although these are gorgeous girls from Australia, Mat McHugh and The Beautiful Girls are playing five live concerts in British Columbia, Canada.The Beautiful Girls are an Aussie band led by Mat McHugh (center), an internationally acclaimed singer/songwriter who also tours solo while not surfing the break
at Sydney's world-class beaches.Move over former lovers Tommy Lee and Kid Rock because Mat McHugh and The Beautiful Girls have arrived at Pamela Anderson’s old stomping grounds. Whether it be at one of Kelly Slater’s secret surfing spots on the rugged West Coast of Vancouver Island in Tofino or at the site of Shawn White’s 2010 Winter Olympic brilliance in Whistler, The Beautiful Girls are playing there. Weaned on punk rock, reggae and hip hop while growing up and surfing in Sydney’s Northern Beach community of Dee Why, frontman Mat McHugh has filled his cup with a cornucopia of influences after spending extended periods of time away from his peaceful Aussie abode in such diverse places as New York, India and Nepal. A lover of dub and dancehall with an ear for wicked riddims, McHugh has his pulse on the international global beat. The Beautiful Girls’ 2010 “Spooks” release showcased the group’s signature sound of folk, reggae, rock, and roots. Mat said, “Our albums tend to sell over time. they never seem to come out with a bang. We rely on word of mouth and like the feeling of people discovering our music for themselves, which I guess is the opposite of how the media-driven music industry would tend to operate. We are just an independent band thatThe Beautiful Girls are bassist Pauly B, guitarist Mat McHugh
and drummer Bruce Braybrooke. has to find a foothold with every release. By choice we don’t have a major label budget or marketing plan to help us be established. The only way we can even compete in the circus that is the music industry is by having something to say and saying it as honestly as we can. It’s a constant battle, but I wouldn’t have it any other way because, for the most part, the music industry and it’s style of hyping every ‘next best thing’ makes me sick.” The long drought for a new release from The Beautiful Girls is by design. Mat McHugh has been busy touring nonstop as a solo act after releasing an EP and two full-length efforts, including the new CD entitled “Love Come Save Me”–which is available as a FREE DOWNLOAD at www.lovecomesaveme.com.
McHugh said, “My only goal is to spread love and give something back to the Universe. I would love for anyone that the music reaches to share it and send it out into the World. The power of ‘word of mouth’ is almighty.” In the spirit of giving, all net profit of CDs sold will be donated to the Surfrider Foundation.
The Beautiful Girls enjoy some positive beach vibes.Currently on tour solo supporting Sublime with Rome in Australia, Mat McHugh is an Aussie one man punky reggae party. “I love the really early dancehall and rocksteady stuff. It’s as crusty and weird as early punk to me. King Tubby, Johnny Osbourne–that’s the more influential side of reggae to me–the originators, who led to the punky stuff like The Specials, The Clash, The Beat,” McHugh said.World Surfing icon Kelly Slater (center) sang and jammed on traditional Hawaiian ukulele with The Beautiful Girls at the 2007 Pro Music Festival at Duranbah Beach on Australia's Gold Coast.Kelly Slater and Eddie Vedder surfing together.Mat McHugh, Kelly Slater and Eddie Vedder of Pearl Jam are passionate about surfing and music. So it would come as no surprise to see the three of them onstage singing about the sport they love and the special connection they all share with the ocean. Slater and Vedder have been friends for 15 years. Vedder also was very close to the late legendary punk rocker Johnny Ramone. Pearl Jam paid tribute to the Ramones by covering the classic “I Believe in Miracles”, which is one of Slater’s favorite jams.Born on Vancouver Island and "discovered" after being shown on the BC Lions big screen,
Comox Valley native Pamela Anderson welcomes The Beautiful Girls to her childhood digs.The Beautiful Girls are happy to be returning to their huge loyal fan base in B.C., Canada.Dressed in a Labatt beer T-shirt, Pamela Anderson was “discovered” at a football game when her image was transmitted on the British Columbia Lions stadium’s big screen. Fans fell in love with the 22-year-old blonde bombshell, who was signed immediately to become Labatt’s Blue Zone Girl. The Beautiful Girls have had a tough act to follow in swaying the Blue Zone vote their way, but they are well-known for giving their ever growing BC audience intimate sold-out shows like no others. The Beautiful Girls Canadian show schedule is as follows: April 18th from 2:30-5:30 pm with Ash Grunwald opening @ Telus World Ski and Snowboard Festival-Skiers Plaza and later that night at Kokanee FreeRide @ Moe Joe’s Nightclub;
April 19th @ Club 9one9 in Victoria; April 20th @ The Legion Hall in Tofino; and April 21st 7 pm with Ash Grunwald opening @ The Venue in Vancouver. The prolific and bona fide McHugh said, “I want to take this opportunity to deeply thank everybody that has supported me and my music, whether solo or with The Beautiful Girls, throughout the years. You’ll never know how much it means. Please accept this music how it was intended, with love…”Net profit of Mat McHugh's "Love Come Save Me" CD will be donated to the Surfrider Foundation.
The LA lifestyle Dodger True BlueWhen asked to special guest Friday morning at 8 am (Perth, Australia time) or Thursday afternoon at 4 pm (PST, USA time) on ABC Grandstand Strike Zone baseball radio show by host @CJColeman after completing my most comprehensive article to date
“MLB digs ‘Down Under’ and find nine Aussie stars”, I requested to include one of the featured Australian players–Pitcher Shane Lindsay of the Los Angeles Dodgers–because of a recent tweet received from @ABQTopes (LA Dodgers Triple-A affiliate Albuquerque Isotopes). I thought to myself that if anyone deserved to go directly from the Australian Baseball League straight to Major League Baseball without any pit stops it was the recently signed Dodger flamethrower. After the Isotopes were kind enough to retweet my article to its 2500 followers, I tweeted back: “Thanks for the RT (retweet) and for sending the Dodgers your best talent. Do you think Aussie Shane Lindsay will wear True Blue after ST (spring training)?”
Moments later @ABQTopes replied,
“He has the tools to impress, but new ownership will have the final say.” Time will tell who exactly will sign Lindsay’s checks, but in the meantime he is training rigorously in Arizona to prepare for the pitcher and catcher February 21st report date at Camelback Ranch in Glendale. Shane emailed me: “Hey mate, doing good…working my butt off in Phoenix and getting ready for camp at athlete performance.” Lindsay is taking this challenge very seriously.Lindsay will be Keeping Up with the Kardashians.
Without a doubt, Lindsay could very well be vintage Jonathan Broxton
with additional strength out of the bullpen. Last season wearing Chicago White Sox silks, the gutsy and often “wild” Australian hurler was not afraid to throw inside with his intimidating signature upper 90’s fastball to strike out hitters. The Dodgers believe Shane Lindsay has what it takes to become successful in MLB, and all he has to do now is figure out who to impress…the “wild” Kim Kardashian?Located at the corner of 4th and Broadway in Manhattan, the MLB Fan Cave hosts interactive fan activities and visits from MLB players, baseball personalities and celebs.Sublime with Rome in the 2011 MLB Fan Cave.In order for me to impress on why you should vote for me to be in the 2012 MLB Fan Cave by clicking HERE so that I may deliver an innovative and fresh approach to the coverage of pro baseball and also report on the latest cutting-edge music and pop culture trends, it is imperative to hear from others about my positive influence on them–as I am not accustomed to being my own publicist! Let’s first connect the dots through the Skunk Records and Sublime stories as told by San Diego-based Slightly Stoopiddrummer Ryan ‘RyMo’ Moran.
While on the road with Rebelution , Ryan Morgan recently spoke about my good friend, Mike ‘Miguel’ Happoldt–co-founder of Skunk Records and producer for Sublime, Slightly Stoopid, Unwritten Law, Long Beach Dub All-Stars and Long Beach Shortbus. ‘RyMo’ explained, “In a nutshell, Skunk Records was two people. It was Brad Nowellfrom Sublime, and Mike Happoldt. Mike Happoldt is still one of our producers to this day, we work with him all the time. Basically those two guys started that record label as an underground Long Beach record label. It was basically two friends who just put their heads together and said, ‘Hey, we’re going to start recording.’ At the time, Mike Happoldt was called ‘Miguel’. Miguel was going to Long Beach State and he was in a recording arts music program there … and so after hours there they would sneak into Long Beach State, and Sublime recorded a whole bunch of stuff there. They would basically just sneak in after hours and use the studio from like, 8 p.m. ‘till 4 in the morning and then come back in the next night and do it all again. Skunk Records really was just a grass roots movement between those two guys.
Now sadly, we all know the story that Brad Nowell passed away in ’96 from an overdose on heroin, which sucked. At that point Mike, or Miguel, basically kept the label going, but it shrunk considerably. It went from like a full-on functioning label to just basically him doing stuff out of his house on a smaller scale. Basically, Skunk Records released quite a few records from bands like The Ziggens, one of Sublime’s favorite bands from back in the day. They released a good amount of other stuff —- obviously the work they did with Long Beach Dub All-Stars. Basically, Skunk Records is just Miguel Happoldt. It’s his project.”DJRoberto at KROQ 106.7
When LA music industry insider executive Dana Smart interviewed Mike ‘Miguel’ Happoldt about Sublime and the influence of reggae, yours truly got some serious props.
Mike said, “Brad was a huge fan of DJ Roberto Angotti of KNAC (not metal yet) in Long Beach. He taped every show between 1985 and 1986.” You can listen to some of the songs that Brad loved by clicking on the following podcast link–The Waxcast Episode 2: Homage to Reggae Revolution–a loyal listener’s tribute to my radio show
before moving on to Los Angeles’ #1 Young Adult Radio Leader, ‘The World Famous KROQ 106.7 FM’, where I deejayed from 1986 through 1992.
I would see Brad regularly when I promoted Club Reggae at Fenders Ballroom in downtown Long Beach, where huge punk groups would perform in the larger room and Jamaica’s Wailing Souls and Eek-A-Mouse, England’s Pato Banton and Tippa Irie as well as LA’s Untouchables and Fishbone and other reggae/ska groups would play in my part of the ballroom on weekends. We would not discriminate against anyone who would enter our Punky Reggae Party. Long Beach experienced a London boomtown feeling in the early/mid-80’s. I clearly remember Brad joining me in the DJ booth when I promoted Eek-A-Mouse and Sublime together at Bogart’s in Long Beach. He came again to check me at an Andy Summers gig as well. When singer Gwen Stefani and bassist Tony Kanal from No Doubt were a couple without a contract, they would frequent my OC Club Reggae where I would test market their records on the dance floor. After graduating early in 1980 from high school at age 17, I studied abroad in London and immersed myself in the 2 Tone movement. Borrowing elements of ska, punk rock, rocksteady, reggae and New Wave, bands like The Specials, The Selecter, The (English) Beat, Madness, Bad Manners, and The Bodysnatchers were the talk of the town. However, it was UB40’s “My Way of Thinking” that captured my imagination. Their progressive and upbeat style of British reggae was ear candy, and I could not get enough of it. I also learned of another Birmingham-based band called Steel Pulse. I collected records from London’s Aswad and Linton Kwesi Johnson as well. The artists trusted me, and I traveled with UB40 throughout America as their emcee while supporting Sting and The Police. I became the first radio deejay to interview British reggae, ska and two tone artists and break their records in America while hosting “Roberto, Rock, Reggae” on KSPC 88.7 in Claremont, California. Although a college station, the strong 3000 watt signal penetrated in Orange, LA, Riverside and San Bernardino counties. Within two years in 1982, I got my first real job in commercial radio when I was hired as a new music jock.
Working overnights at ‘Rock N Rhythm KNAC’ in Long Beach, I mixed New Wave and Classic Rock from the 50’s-70’s in this unique format which allowed deejay freedom with two personal choices per hour. I would bring in my crate of records from independent and unsigned artists to customize my radio show with a healthy dose of reggae and ska. After I had created a huge buzz for the music, I was rewarded with the first reggae show–“Reggae Revolution”–on commercial radio in addition to working my KNAC new music weekend deejay shifts and serving as program director of Pomona College’s KSPC. Often I would receive acetate test press copies of songs fresh out of the studio from up-and-coming LA New Wave bands like the Mystic Knights of the Oingo Boingo (who would later drop the long name), The Motels, X, The Blasters, The Plimsouls and Missing Persons. The groups would have listening parties while paying close attention to the audio quality of the recording on-the-air before going back in the studio to master the song.
Although we did not have the signal strength of LA powerhouse KROQ, Long Beach’s KNAC–lead by the innovative program director Jimmy ‘The Saint’ Christopher (who would later become the PA announcer for the Texas Rangers at the Ballpark at Arlington)–was looked upon by the music industry as an indicator station. While other stations would only play one or two tracks from an album, KNAC would dig deeper and play as many as four or five. Once research had indicated that the public liked the tracks, then only would the more conservative and bigger KROQ’s of the world would add songs to the playlist–especially if there was payola.Reggae legend Peter Tosh granted DJ Roberto his final interview before his untimely death in Kingston.
I thought that I would never sell my soul to the corporate giants, but it took a KNAC format change to Metal in 1986 for me to take a sabbatical in the UK and come back stronger than ever at KROQ. While a Film Studies major at Claremont McKenna College, I had done a documentary of the English Beat and written my thesis on reggae based upon two interviews with legendary original Wailer, the late and great Peter Tosh. He was the Original Jamaican Rude Boy that many of the two tone characters emulated years later in England.Original Jamaican Rude Boys Bunny Livingston (Wailer), Bob Marley and Peter ToshPato Banton performs live in front of 50,000 fans and a nationally-televised audience with Los Pericos in Buenos Aires, Argentina at 2007 Pepsi Music Fest.After graduating from college and taking some time off, I embarked on a journey to document UB40’s making of the ‘Geoffrey Morgan’ Album in their hometown of Birmingham, England. Staying at each band-member’s house a week at a time, it goes without saying that the lads were tired of my eternal smiling grin and my video camera staring at them every step of the way. Upon arriving at their DEP studios in the industrial section of Birmingham’s Digbeth, the band suggested I go down to an open audition held underground at a local pub where local talent would be performing live.Ranking Roger, Yaz Alexander and Pato Banton
My life would change forever… At the time, a local MC by the name of Pato Banton had recorded two tracks on UB40’s ‘Baggariddim’ Double Album. One of the tracks, “Hip Hop Lyrical Robot”, was a B Side to the #1 song “I Got You Babe” featuring Chrissie Hynde from The Pretenders. After the success of the Beat’s “Pato and Roger Ago Talk” off the Beat’s ‘Special Beat Service’ Album, Ranking Roger continued to produce Birmingham’s top MC while Pato was on fire.Fergie with Tippa Irie (in red) & the Black Eyed Peas
Roger did not disappoint the local reggae massive when he produced Pato’s 12″ single called “Mash Up The Telly”, which was the song that I had videotaped at the audition and later became a big UK smash hit. Before I could stop the camera and say hello, Pato was out the door and gone… I was blown away at his amazing talent and charisma on camera. I showed the footage to UB40 back at the studio, and the next day keyboardist Mickey Virtue game me Pato’s 12″ single “The Boss” and business card.
I immediately phoned and arranged a meeting with Pato’s manager, Grantley ‘G.T.’ Haynes. I learned that he also managed another client from London’s #1 Saxon Sound named Tippa Irie, who had massive success with “Hello Darling”. I had been sending postcards to KROQ Program Director Rick Carroll so he would expect me when I arrived back in LA. Equipped with new vinyl and a vengeance to get back on the radio, I brought back “Reggae Revolution” to the Southern California airwaves with a much improved signal that reached five times the amount of listeners I had previously at KNAC. Within a few months,Pato Banton and Tippa Irie were signed to U.S. recording contracts.
I arranged for Pato to record a song at the KROQ studios with the San Diego-based rock group Private Domain. The end result was “Absolute Perfection”, and the song became an instant hit on commercial radio throughout America in addition to a staple in the KROQ Top 10 playlist. Later I took Tippa Irie to see his first Black Eyed Peas concert at the Belly Up in Solana Beach. The end result there was “Hey Mama”, a track that broke radio charts internationally and was a MTV favorite. UB40 have always respected my writing style, and they paid me the ultimate compliment when they asked me to write the liner notes for their Dancehall Album.
After they flew me to Jamaica, I was able to work out of Ali Campbell and Brian Travers’ Oracabessa Records HQ in St. Mary. There I would vibe up full stop and meet a long cast of Jamaican stars passing through including Sly & Robbie, Rappa Robert, Toots Hibbert, Jack Radics and Mr. Vegas. Once word got out that I was writing liners, the phone rang constantly. The Sublime camp always loved my articles for Mean Street Magazine and asked for to write the liner notes for ‘Sublime: Everything Under the Sun’ Box Set. Mad Professor requested that I write Macka B’s ‘Global Messenger’ CD liners as well.
Music Club U.S.A. allowed me to go through the entire Fashion Records catalogue out of South London and produce two compilation CDs: ‘Love All Night’ and ‘Essential Dancehall Classics’. Despite having my plate full between teaching English in Orange County and freelance writing nonstop, I continued working with Pato Banton as he had a long list of recording artists who to this day consider him an inspiration and a foundation artist. Sting recorded with Pato on a couple occasions and flew he and his band on his private jet to Spain. Peter Gabriel recruited Pato to join him on his international WOMAD Tour. Ali and Robin Campbell scored a #1 hit with Pato on “Baby Come Back”. I have since arranged for Pato Banton to tour with the likes of 311, Matisyahu, English Beat, and Argentina’s Los Pericos. Tippa Irie and Pato Banton are first-rate live performers and consummate professionals in the recording studio. Both constantly in demand, it won’t
be long before they each throw out the first pitch at an upcoming MLB game and perform live in the MLB Fan Cave.
As it was previously in 2010 and 2011, pitching is once again all the rage now in Major League Baseball. Despite seven no-hitters tossed in 2012 by starting pitchers Homer Bailey, Felix Hernandez, Matt Cain, Kevin Millwood (with the help of five relievers), Johan Santana, Jered Weaver and Phil Humber, it’s the men in the pen that garner most of the over-the-top baseball fanaticism. Leading the late-inning charge of borderline insanity is Aussie closer Grant Balfour of the Oakland Athletics. Often seen dumping water over his head before leaving the bullpen and talking to himself in-between pitches, Balfour’s on-field antics are undoubtedly the most anticipated sight to see in the 2012 MLB playoffs.
mlbblogger 