The Headliners and Legends Auction 2018

February 1, 2018

Backstage Auctions is proud to present an amazing collection of rock and pop memorabilia, including a highly impressive selection of artist signed guitars, RIAA-certified record awards, a large collection of autographed memorabilia, original Peter Max paintings, and a dazzling array of tour and promotional collectibles.

With over 50 signed guitars from - among others - Paul McCartney, Bob Dylan, The Rolling Stones, Bruce Springsteen, Fleetwood Mac, Eric Clapton, Eagles, Pearl Jam and U2, as well as a host of other great autographed memorabilia such as a Beach Boys surfboard, a Miles Davis print, Elton John Record Award and Queen posters, this auction truly is all about "Headliners and Legends".


This impressive collection of memorabilia comes from the estate of a well-known music industry executive who spent decades working for music retailers, record labels, and festivals. In the course of his nearly 50-year-long career, he worked with just about every artist and band from the 1970s on. He was involved with the Grammy organization, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, as well as various music-related charities. His broad collection reflects not only his true passion for music, but deep friendships forged over the years. A portion of the proceeds of the auction will be donated to the favorite charities of this well-loved industry icon.

The Headliners and Legends Auction will go LIVE with a preview of the entire catalog on February 9th, 2018 and bidding will begin on February 16th and close on February 25th, 2018.

For more about the auction, carve out some time to listen to Goldmine Magazine's interview with our very own Jacques van Gool. Pat Prince, Goldmine editor and Jacques talk about the auction highlights. Click here: Podcast Link

Sign up today for your All Access Auction Pass: Register Here

Rock 'n Pop Music Memorabilia Auction Highlights

By Patrick Prince - Editor of Goldmine Magazine

In April, Backstage Auctions presents its annual Rock & Pop Auction packed with many irresistible items for collectors. Make sure you mark your calendar for April 23 to May 1, 2016.

Backstage Auctions owner Jacques van Gool was on hand to explain to Goldmine the significance of this upcoming music auction.

GOLDMINE: Tell us about the highlights of the Rock & Pop auction.

JACQUES VAN GOOL: The auction as a whole is one big, glorious fest of collectibles! We are still processing collections but in the end I anticipate that we will have in the vicinity of 1,000 auction lots. As an auctioneer it’s always hard to point at your favorite child. There are obvious highlights, such as the Beatles’ album-used Vox organ or Johnny Cash’s album-used recorder. At the same time, one might find Paul Stanley’s stage-worn boots or an interview cassette with Glenn Frey the highlight of the auction. For me, I just look at the event in its entirety, and what I see is a spectacular celebration of Rock & Pop memorabilia.

GM: Many of our readers will be interested right away in The Beatles collection in this auction. Please detail it for us.

JVG: Indeed, it is a remarkable collection, coming from the estate of a former Florida-based DJ. Safe to say that this individual had a legitimate man-crush on The Beatles, as the collection alone consists of nearly 1,000 individual pieces, ranging from massive amounts of books, magazines, CDs, DVDs and current-day merchandise all the way to an impressive collection of 1960s memorabilia, vinyl and reels. Among the eye-poppers are a Beatles turntable, rare Vee-Jay records, a Butcher cover and a fantastic collection of Bag One artwork, including two original portfolios, five John Lennon signed lithographs, 1970 exhibition programs and many other official prints. 

John Lennon Bag One

GM: You mentioned that a Johnny Cash recorder.

JVG: That’s a good one, too! In the late 1960s, Johnny Cash bought an Ampex MM-1000 recorder for the recording of several of his albums. In the mid-1970s, Johnny then sold the recorder to the SmithLee Recording Studio in St. Louis, who subsequently sold it to a Kansas-based recording studio owner. It’s been in Kansas ever since. Not only does this 2-inch recorder (the “Rolls-Royce” of its time) come with the original paperwork from Johnny Cash, but the Kansas studio owner wrote Johnny and received a letter back confirming that, indeed, this was the recorder he used for a number of his own albums. Not only are working 2-inch recorders hard to find for those who want or need one, but to potentially own one with this level of music history is an exceptional opportunity. Heads-up though; this is a 700-pound behemoth, so proper space and reinforced floorboards are required.

Rare Pressing of David Bowie's "Heroes" Album 

GM: You also have Bowie memorabilia up for auction. Does a rock star’s death make memorabilia more sought after? Is that merely a mainstream assumption? Or does it depend?

JVG: Good question and I think it’s a little bit of everything you mentioned. Sure, there’s always the immediate wave of demand and with Bowie that was no exception. But in general, it’s just a small spike on the longevity chart of an artist’s overall degree of collectability. Bowie was already collectible and will remain collectible long after his death. The prices are a little higher now than usual and with time, let’s say a year or so from now, it’ll swing back to where it was. And yes, we do have some cool Bowie collectibles. The one piece that deserves upfront mention is that we have literally the only one existing multi-color vinyl pressing of “Heroes”, coming directly from the L.A.-based pressing plant that was commissioned by RCA Records at the time. 

KISS Paul Stanley Used Boots

GM: Is there a favorite lot that you are personally excited about?

JVG: Oh man, where do I begin? Maybe I stay close to home. It’s no secret that KISS was the band that made me a collector back in 1975, so I’ve always been partial to KISS collectibles. We’ve got some great stuff this time around, including record awards, vintage 1970s shirts, passes and cards, autographed items and so on. There’s even the original light board controller used to light up the massive KISS logo on the 1979 Dynasty tour. But of all pieces, it has to be the pair of Paul Stanley tour used boots. There’s just something magical about these crazy platform boots.

GM: Anything else you’d like to add about this upcoming auction? 

JVG: Yes, there are a couple things I would like to add. One is an amazing collection of Bruce Springsteen memorabilia that includes signed items, rare promotional material, vinyl, concert CDs, record awards, jackets, you name it. There is even of rare college magazine from the 1960s that published Bruce’s first poems. Bruce Springsteen collectors will be thrilled and impressed with the depth and width of everything.

Another fantastic collection features original Fillmore East negatives, mostly from the late 1960s. There are all the usual suspects, but I’m partial to the set of “The Wind in the Willows” negatives from 1967, featuring none other than Deborah Harry.

And speaking of 1967, remember the band The One Percent? Probably not, but it eventually morphed into Lynyrd Skynyrd and we will feature the original management contract for this band containing the signatures of the likes of Ronnie Van Zant and Gary Rossington ... and their parents! None of the band members was old enough to enter into a legal contract, hence all the parents’ signatures.

Fleetwood Mac Fully Signed Set List

We have a fantastic collection of original interview cassettes that comes from the private collection of a Japanese journalist who interviewed American and British rock stars for a host of Japanese magazines. These are intimate recordings with the very first lineup of the Red Hot Chili Peppers and an hour-long discussion at the Aspen home of Glenn Frey — great stuff.

I can go on and on. There are hundreds of fantastic concert shirts, tour itineraries, backstage passes and tickets, collectible vinyl, Alice Cooper-used stage and album props, more autographed items than one could hang on a wall and an equal number of impressive record awards. There are posters, promotional jackets, and just about everything else. 

This is hands down one of the most comprehensive Rock & Pop auctions we have ever done and we couldn’t be more proud. Come to our site when the auction preview goes live and feast your eyes on all this amazing music memorabilia and history.

A PREVIEW of the Rock & Pop Auction will be live on April 16, until its official opening. 

The auction will be open for bidding from April 23 to May 1. For more information, or to bid, visit:  www.backstageauctions.com. 

 — Patrick Prince - Editor / Goldmine Magazine 

Reposted from Goldmine with permission. All Images are property of Backstage Auctions. 

A second life for Fleetwood Mac's 'Tusk': Reassessing the band's most controversial LP

'Tusk' gets deluxe reissue treatment, new video platform celebrates Fleetwood Mac
By Peter Lindblad

Fleetwood Mac - Tusk

Fair or not, there is a tendency to think of 1979's Tusk as "Fleetwood Mac's folly," the messy result of insane hubris, too much cocaine and frayed nerves, not to mention a whole lot of inner turmoil.

Trying to follow up Rumours, one of the biggest-selling records of all-time, can make an already dysfunctional band do crazy things. That includes blowing $1 million on making a record. They even convinced the University of Southern California marching band to play on the euphoric, wildly original, poly-rhythmic free-for-all that is the title track.

In desperation, they pulled out every trick they could think of, and their experimental approach – borrowing elements from emerging genres such as punk and new wave – seems entirely logical in hindsight. After all, how do you top Rumours? And, going one step further, how do you even attempt it with a band that doesn't seem to want anything to do with each other? There was no blueprint to follow. There were no case studies to review, except maybe that of The Beatles, who went off the deep end a little with 1968's The White Album, after engineering their masterpiece, Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band. So forgive Fleetwood Mac if they were feeling somewhat desperate.

Assailed by critics upon its release as incoherent, self-indulgent and unfocused, Tusk took its lumps, but over time, those initial assessments gave way to more glowing commentary. Nikki Hirsch is the senior vice president for ZUUS Media, who is releasing an exclusive music video collection of Fleetwood Mac's most popular hits. ZUUS launched its Fleetwood Mac channel Dec. 3, providing a platform for viewing all of Fleetwood Mac's videos, as well as those of Stevie Nicks. The timing coincides with the release of reissued, deluxe versions of Tusk released Dec. 4 by Warner Bros. Records with a treasure trove of bonus material.

"Fleetwood Mac's Tusk is a legendary rock record – a double-LP with an experimental flavor and distinct, disparate songwriting, which (Fleetwood Mac bassist) John McVie used to say sounded like three separate solo artists," said Hirsch. "Despite these nuances, when it was first released in '79, the album was surprisingly met with harsh criticism for underselling in comparison to the band's previous album, Rumours. Perhaps it's because of this diss that the album is considered highly underrated by critics and fans alike. When Warner announced the deluxe re-release of Tusk, replete with previously unreleased material, we jumped at the opportunity to create a special artist collection channel to celebrate the band and album."

Listened to with fresh ears, Tusk doesn't seem all that weird today, although the bounding energy and oddball, manic exuberance of "The Ledge," "What Makes You Think You're The One" and "That's Enough for Me" – where a wired-to-the-gills Lindsey Buckingham takes center stage – can be jarring. It's as if these songs themselves were doing lines of coke in the studio, especially when juxtaposed against the stream of mellow, folky pop gold flowing from Christine McVie's "Honey Hi," "Never Forget" and "Brown Eyes," as well as the spectral beauty of Nicks' "Sisters of the Moon" and the breathtakingly beautiful "Sara."

Despite its excesses and strange hyperactivity, Tusk's up-tempo numbers have a bright, buoyant charm and surprising immediacy, while its well-crafted, soft-rock gems glow luminously, and while it's not an album that has a easy, logical sequence, it holds together pretty well – even if there wasn't much esprit de corps among the troops. Since then, hatchets have been buried, and this version of Fleetwood Mac, the one that couldn't stand to be around each other as Tusk was being birthed, is peacefully coexisting, even flourishing on its most recent "On With The Show" world tour. And those who want the full Fleetwood Mac experience will find a lot to like about ZUUS' new venture.

"ZUUS' strategy with our artist collection channel platform is to provide an expertly curated viewing experience for fans, where they can enjoy continuous play-out of an individual artist's official music videos, live performances and additional content in one place," said Hirsch. "In our Fleetwood Mac channel, we feature the band's official music videos for classics like "Big Love" and "Little Lies," along with Stevie Nicks' live version of "Landslide," and additional collaborations and videos from Mick Fleetwood and Lindsey Buckingham. When Fleetwood Mac fans visit the channel on ZUUS, they will be able to re-experience the band in a unique, engaging way."

As for Tusk itself, it was released in 1979 as a double-album and it climbed to No. 4 on the U.S. album charts on the strength of hits like "Sara," "Think About Me," and the title track. The new reissues are available as a Deluxe Edition (5-CD/2-LP/1-DVD-A, $119.98), an Expanded Edition (3-CD, $24.98), and a single disc of the newly remastered original album ($11.98). Digital versions will also be available.

The Tusk (Deluxe Edition) is packed with five CDs, including the remastered original album, an alternate version of the complete album made up of session outtakes, most of which have never been released, as well as an additional selection of singles, demos and remixes, including an outtake of "Think About Me," an early version of "That's Enough For Me" called "Out On The Road," plus several incarnations of "I Know I'm Not Wrong."

Want Tusk-related live stuff? This lavish release also includes two discs loaded with 22 unreleased performances from the band's 1979 "Tusk" tour with selections from concerts in London, Tucson, and St. Louis. It includes live versions of album tracks like "Sara, "Over And Over" and "Save Me A Place," as well as favorites like "Landslide," "You Make Loving Fun," "Rhiannon," "Don't Stop" and "Go Your Own Way." The collection also boasts a 5.1 surround mix of Tusk on DVD-Audio and vinyl of the original album on 2-LPs, and it's housed in an elegant box similar to the Rumours Deluxe Edition, with extended liner notes boasting new interviews with all the band members in a well-appointed booklet. This has to be one of the most impressive reissue treatments of the year.

TUSK: DELUXE EDITION (5-CD/2-LP/1-DVD)

Track Listing

Disc One: Original Album Remastered

1. "Over & Over"

2. "The Ledge"

3. "Think About Me"

4. "Save Me A Place"

5. "Sara"

6. "What Makes You Think You're The One"

7. "Storms"

8. "That's All For Everyone"

9. "Not That Funny"

10. "Sisters Of The Moon"

11. "Angel"

12. "That's Enough For Me"

13. "Brown Eyes"

14. "Never Make Me Cry"

15. "I Know I'm Not Wrong"

16. "Honey Hi"

17. "Beautiful Child"

18. "Walk A Thin Line"

19. "Tusk"

20. "Never Forget"

Disc Two: Singles, Outtakes, Sessions

1. "Think About Me" (Single Remix)

2. "That's All For Everyone" (Remix)

3. "Sisters Of The Moon" (Remix)

4. "Not That Funny" (Single Remix)

5. "Sara" (Single Edit)

6. "Walk A Thin Line" (Song #3 - 03/13/79)

7. "Honey Hi" (Alternate Version - 10/18/78)

8. "Storms" (Alternate Version - 11/30/78)

9. "Save Me A Place" * (2nd Version -10/10/78)

10. "Never Make Me Cry" (Version - 04/17/79)

11. "Out On The Road" (aka "That's Enough For Me" - Demo - 12/19/78) *

12. "I Know I'm Not Wrong" - Lindsey's Song #1 (Demo)

13. "I Know I'm Not Wrong" * (10/10/78 Version)

14. "I Know I'm Not Wrong" * (11/3/78 Version)

15. "I Know I'm Not Wrong" * (4/25/79 Version)

16. "I Know I'm Not Wrong" * (8/13/79 Version)

17. "I Know I'm Not Wrong" * (1/23/79 Version)

18. "Tusk" (Demo - 01/15/79) *

19. "Tusk" "Stage Riff" (Demo - 01/30/79)*

20. "Tusk" (Outtake Track - 02/01/79)*

21. "Tusk" (Outtake Mix - 01/23/79) *

22. "Tusk" (USC Version - 06/04/79) *

Disc Three: The Alternate Tusk

1. "Over & Over" (04/02/79) *

2. "The Ledge" (03/13/79)

3. "Think About Me" (02/18/79) *

4. "Save Me A Place" (10/18/78) *

5. "Sara" (03/10/79)

6. "What Makes You Think You're The One" (02/24/79) *

7. "Storms" (06/02/79) *

8. "That's All For Everyone" (10/20/78) *

9. "Not That Funny" (05/19/79) *

10. "Sisters Of The Moon" (11/12/78) 11. "Angel" (04/02/79) *

12. "That's Enough For Me" (09/29/78) *

13. "Brown Eyes" (with Lindsey & Peter Green, 09/20/78) *

14. "Never Make Me Cry" (02/08/79) *

15. "I Know I'm Not Wrong" (11/02/78) *

16. "Honey Hi" (10/11/78) *

17. "Beautiful Child" (10/09/78) *

18. "Walk A Thin Line" (04/06/79) *

19. "Tusk" (07/19/79) *

20. "Never Forget" (06/29/78) *

Disc Four: Tusk Tour Live I

1. Intro (Wembley, 06/26/80)

2. "Say You Love Me"(Wembley, 06/26/80)

3. "The Chain" (Wembley, 06/20/80)

4. "Don't Stop" (Wembley, 06/27/80)

5. "Dreams" (Wembley, 06/20/80)

6. "Oh Well" (Wembley, 06/20/80)

7. "Rhiannon" (Tuscon, 08/28/80)

8. "Over And Over" (St. Louis, 11/05/79)

9. "That's Enough For Me" (Wembley, 06/21/80)

10. "Sara" (Tuscon, 08/28/80)

11. "Not That Funny" (St. Louis, 11/05/79)

12. "Tusk" (St. Louis, 11/05/79)

Disc Five: Tusk Tour Live II

1. "Save Me A Place" (St. Louis, 11/05/79)

2. "Landslide" (Omaha, 08/21/80)

3. "What Makes You Think You're The One" (St. Louis, 11/05/79)

4. "Angel" (St. Louis, 11/05/79)

5. "You Make Loving Fun" (Wembley, 06/20/80)

6. "I'm So Afraid" (St. Louis, 11/05/79)

7. "World Turning" (Wembley, 06/22/80)

8. "Go Your Own Way" (Wembley, 06/22/80)

9. "Sisters Of The Moon" (Wembley, 06/22/80)

10. "Songbird" (Wembley, 06/27/80)

All live tracks previously unreleased

TUSK: DELUXE EDITION (3-CD)

Track Listing

Disc One: Original Album Remastered

1. "Over & Over"

2. "The Ledge"

3. "Think About Me"

4. "Save Me A Place"

5. "Sara"

6. "What Makes You Think You're The One"

7. "Storms"

8. "That's All For Everyone"

9. "Not That Funny"

10. "Sisters Of The Moon"

11. "Angel"

12. "That's Enough For Me"

13. "Brown Eyes"

14. "Never Make Me Cry"

15. "I Know I'm Not Wrong"

16. "Honey Hi"

17. "Beautiful Child"

18. "Walk A Thin Line"

19. "Tusk"

20. "Never Forget"

Disc Two: Singles, Outtakes, Sessions

1. "Think About Me" (Single Remix)

2. "That's All For Everyone" (Remix)

3. "Sisters Of The Moon" (Remix)

4. "Not That Funny" (Single Remix)

5. "Sara" (Single Edit)

6. "Walk A Thin Line" (Song #3 - 03/13/79)

7. "Honey Hi" (Alternate Version - 10/18/78)

8. "Storms" (Alternate Version - 11/30/78)

9. "Save Me A Place" * (2nd Version -10/10/78)

10. "Never Make Me Cry" (Version - 04/17/79)

11. "Out On The Road" (aka "That's Enough For Me" - Demo - 12/19/78) *

12. "I Know I'm Not Wrong" - Lindsey's Song #1 (Demo)

13. "I Know I'm Not Wrong" * (10/10/78 Version)

14. "I Know I'm Not Wrong" * (11/3/78 Version)

15. "I Know I'm Not Wrong" * (4/25/79 Version)

16. "I Know I'm Not Wrong" * (8/13/79 Version)

17. "I Know I'm Not Wrong" * (1/23/79 Version)

18. "Tusk" (Demo - 01/15/79) *

19. "Tusk" "Stage Riff" (Demo - 01/30/79)*

20. "Tusk" (Outtake Track - 02/01/79)*

21. "Tusk" (Outtake Mix - 01/23/79) *

22. "Tusk" (USC Version - 06/04/79) *

Disc Three: The Alternate Tusk

1. "Over & Over" (04/02/79) *

2. "The Ledge" (03/13/79)

3. "Think About Me" (02/18/79) *

4. "Save Me A Place" (10/18/78) *

5. "Sara" (03/10/79)

6. "What Makes You Think You're The One" (02/24/79) *

7. "Storms" (06/02/79) *

8. "That's All For Everyone" (10/20/78) *

9. "Not That Funny" (05/19/79) *

10. "Sisters Of The Moon" (11/12/78)

11. "Angel" (04/02/79) *

12. "That's Enough For Me" (09/29/78) *

13. "Brown Eyes" (with Lindsey & Peter Green, 09/20/78) *

14. "Never Make Me Cry" (02/08/79) *

15. "I Know I'm Not Wrong" (11/02/78) *

16. "Honey Hi" (10/11/78) *

17. "Beautiful Child" (10/09/78) *

18. "Walk A Thin Line" (04/06/79) *

19. "Tusk" (07/19/79) *

20. "Never Forget" (06/29/78) *

*Denotes previously unreleased

For more information, please visit FleetwoodMac.com/Tusk

Ordering information links

Physical:

• Deluxe (5CD/2LP/1DVD) - http://smarturl.it/TuskDeluxe

• Expanded (3CD) - http://smarturl.it/Tusk3CD

• 2015 Remaster (1CD) - http://smarturl.it/TuskCD

Digital:

• Deluxe - http://smarturl.it/TuskDL

• Expanded - http://smarturl.it/TuskExpandedDL

• 2015 Album Remaster - http://smarturl.it/TuskRemasterDL

CD Review: Bl'ast! – Blood!

CD Review: Bl’ast! – Blood!

Southern Lord

All Access Rating: A-

Bl'ast! - Blood! 2013

As was made abundantly clear while waxing nostalgic about Sound City in his feel-good documentary film about the place, Dave Grohl plans to put the famed studio’s grand old Neve console – the one that brought to life the magic of Fleetwood Mac’s Rumors and Nirvana’s Nevermind – to good use.

Breathing new life into some long-lost vintage master tapes of Santa Cruz hardcore heroes Bl’ast was one of his first orders of business, and he takes a flamethrower to material that was already highly flammable, his remastering and mixing work enhancing the already concentrated violence and red-eyed fury of these unpredictable punk-rock seizures. And he’s just a bit player in this drama, as was William DuVall – now plying his trade with Alice in Chains.

Blood! is reportedly the only document of DuVall making sweet fiery hardcore with Bl’ast. Industrious rhythms and rampaging guitars that are thicker and wider than one would expect are what cause the sudden impact of Blood!, but don’t mistake activity for a lack of musicality. Still, raw power and unbridled fury course through its veins, as the aptly titled Blood! packs enough explosives into these combustible tracks to attract the unwanted attention of the ATF. From the first bruising, urgent rumblings and building momentum of “Only Time Will Tell” to the sharp turns negotiated throughout the blazing “Something Beyond,” the high-octane action of Blood! is breathtakingly fast, aggressive and relentless.

Even while Bl’ast cultivates a resonant, animalistic growl in guitar tone, something most old punks cared nothing about, on Blood! they engage in dizzying shifts of dynamics in “Ssshhh,” “Sometimes” and “Winding Down” while driving impossibly fast, but never recklessly, as they brake and stomp on the accelerator through the stop-start traffic of “Sequel.” Knowing exactly what direction they want to go, Bl’ast feverishly tears through the 1:38 “Poison” – tied for the shortest song on Blood! – as if they have three strikes against them and they’re being chased by California cops, but they never seem desperate or self-destructive.

Then again, jail might be preferable to the unsettling psychology of “Your Eyes,” made even more deliciously disturbing by heavy, almost sludgy, metallic riffs that rise up and look to the heavens for deliverance. If Minor Threat took more of a liking to Black Sabbath and explored slightly longer forms and staged more angular sonic ambushes, all while maintaining its muscular torque, they might have made the tempestuous, biting and brawny Blood! As it is, there are only a few hardcore acts with this kind of DNA, Black Flag being one of them. If Henry Rollins needs a transfusion, he might want to give Bl’ast – these raging sonic contortionists of the highest caliber – a call. http://www.southernlord.com/

– Peter Lindblad

Movie Review: Sound City

Movie Review: Sound City

Director: Dave Grohl

Roswell Films

All Access Review: A

Sound City - Dave Grohl 2013

The inner sanctum of Sound City never appeared in Better Homes & Gardens. Interiors with walls covered in brown shag carpeting and beat-up furniture that even a college fraternity would leave out on the curb would certainly offend the delicate sensibilities of its readership. From the outside, the place looked like a dump. Inside, it was even worse. But if you were a musician stepping into the studio for the first time, those record awards hanging in the hallways certainly made you overlook the shabby accommodations.

Such was the case for Dave Grohl, who made the trip down to Los Angeles in the early ‘90s with his Nirvana band mates, Kurt Cobain and Krist Novaselic, to bring their vision for Nevermind to life in the same studio where Fleetwood Mac had recorded Rumours. Understandably, Grohl has a soft spot in his heart for Sound City, and so do the numerous artists who did some of their best work there. It’s gone now, but not forgotten, having closed as a commercial studio in May 2011, and Grohl is making sure everybody understands what a special place it was with his wonderfully nostalgic tribute “Sound City.”

In his directorial debut, Grohl, in his own inimitably casual and yet excitable manner, does the next-to-impossible, making a dirty, run-down recording studio that had never seen better days seem magical. And it was. How else do you explain the existence of a room that produced absolutely perfect drum sound, even though it had none of the characteristics that drummers want in such a facility? In fact, by all rights, it should have yielded terrible drum tracks, as the producers, engineers and drummers interviewed by Grohl are only too happy to tell you. And then there’s that custom-made Neve 8028 board, the one Grohl saved when Sound City went under for good. There were only four like it in the world, and the care that went into building one helped sound men become studio legends – like Butch Vig, who produced Nevermind. 

Even going so far as to interview the maker of that very board, Grohl – playfully playing dumb while listening to Rupert Neve explain in great detail how it works – practically creates another character for his movie with that console, its wires and buttons having played such a huge role in committing some of the greatest studio performances in rock history to tape. If only that board could talk. Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, Metallica, Rage Against the Machine, Fear, Dio, Barry Manilow, Rick Springfield, Neil Young – all of them made records at Sound City, and in the right hands, that Neve board did God’s work. In the end, Grohl rescues it and puts it back to work, as he and the rest of the Foo Fighters record tracks with a number of artists, including Paul McCartney and Springfield, who as it so happens, provides the most poignant moment of the film.

While most the movie is a parade of warm memories and funny anecdotes – Fear’s Lee Ving providing some of the comic relief, while others talk glowingly about recording albums the old way – there’s a clearly emotional Springfield, openly expressing regret over treating Sound City owner Joe Gottfried, a man who’d dealt with him as if he were his own son, badly after he’d made it big. Gottfried’s kindness is remembered by many in the movie, as are the risks he and fellow owner Tom Skeeter took while running the studio and waiting for that big break that would rescue it from certain ruin.

As much as “Sound City” is a lively and enthusiastic study of the creative process and a not-too geeky exploration of music’s “digital vs. analog” debate, it’s also sheds light on the invaluable contributions of those behind the scenes who gave Sound City its family atmosphere. And that’s the charm of “Sound City,” an unstructured, freewheeling film that’s more of an Irish wake than a somber eulogy, where Grohl interviews practically everybody who ever set foot in Sound City and they all toast its shambolic charms with unguarded commentary, speaking of it as they would a long-lost friend. And Grohl’s preternatural skill as a filmmaker – who knew he had it in him? – shines through, as he collects all the engaging elements of this tale and pieces them together, somewhat chronologically, in a way that makes sense, even though perhaps it shouldn’t. Just like the best rock ‘n’ roll.

-        –    Peter Lindblad