Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Yeah, either Detroit Wheels.
Speaker 2 (00:01):
Has that Douglas.
Speaker 1 (00:02):
Yes, it is hi, Doug. It's Michael Lardy, Michael, Michael Lardi.
It is good to talk to you, my friend.
Speaker 3 (00:09):
Good.
Speaker 2 (00:10):
It's been a while.
Speaker 4 (00:11):
Yeah, it's good to talk to you. A guitar player
extraordinary from Great White. We've done a lot over the years.
Speaker 3 (00:18):
And just indeed we have.
Speaker 1 (00:21):
It's good to see you still rocket out there. Brother.
Speaker 3 (00:23):
I was gonna say, nobody's told us to go home yet,
so you know we're we're still having fun doing it. Yeah.
Speaker 1 (00:28):
Well, same with me.
Speaker 4 (00:29):
I've been around a while now. Some people say I've
been around too long.
Speaker 1 (00:33):
But you know, I'm still going. So I'm enjoying it
right now.
Speaker 4 (00:37):
It's my fiftieth year of them, believe it or not, Michael,
and I'm enjoying it more now, I think than before.
Speaker 2 (00:43):
So and it think that.
Speaker 3 (00:44):
Might be from just a fact we appreciate it more,
you know, the older we get. There's there's a thing
about it that that tastes a little sweeter like a
well aged wine.
Speaker 4 (00:55):
Yeah, and it's and it's great to get together with
you because it's been a while and you guys are
coming into town to the capital Theater coming up on Friday, May.
Speaker 1 (01:04):
Second, Great White in Flint.
Speaker 4 (01:06):
This could be a movie Mike, because they don't get
they don't get very big acts, you know, hanging out
in Flint these days, but except for maybe the machine shot.
But it's good to see the Capitol Theater putting some
big bands in there, like you guys, and you know,
we're pretty excited to have you rolling into town. So
(01:27):
the summer's coming. What else have you guys got planned
this year?
Speaker 3 (01:32):
It's just dates, date states. I mean, we're so lucky.
We ended up doing it somewhere between forty and fifty
dates a year, and of course Summer risks sort of
the high season, so that's probably where we do. About
fifty five sixty percent of the shows that we do
is over the summer months. So we're looking forward to
(01:54):
We're doing M three a couple of days after you
guys over in Baltimore, and then a couple out in
California after that, and then uh kind of swim around
the Midwest for a while and then just keep keep going,
you know, bouncing. And that's the cool thing about doing
fly dates, no hours. You can pretty much go anywhere,
(02:16):
you know, and you know, if you do back to
back shows, it can be and you can do Florida
one day and then Ohio the next, and then you know,
Montana the day after that.
Speaker 4 (02:28):
Yeah, well that's great because it's getting harder and harder
to find classic rock bands, especially from the eighties.
Speaker 1 (02:34):
So you know, we salute you.
Speaker 4 (02:36):
Guys and still being out there and and continuing to
rock on an extremely high level.
Speaker 1 (02:42):
I might add as well, but well, you.
Speaker 3 (02:45):
Know, I will I will tell you. You know, it's
a Detroit Radio did us as solid back in the
day we were trying to get you know, past that
you know thing of you know, selling eighty two hundred
thousand records and believe it or not, I don't know
if you remember this, but Wheels actually was the station
(03:07):
to debut the song rock Me.
Speaker 4 (03:10):
Oh yeah, no, I was there absolutely, and if you
remember correctly, it was a rough mix pre harmonica.
Speaker 1 (03:19):
Oh wow.
Speaker 4 (03:20):
Now I don't remember that, but we that was you know,
one of the things that the original Wheels used to
do was, uh, you know, go out there and dig
out those you know, those exclusives you know that people
didn't have, and the record companies would jump up and
down and go crazy and cease and desist notes and
(03:43):
on the.
Speaker 1 (03:43):
Good old days of rock radio.
Speaker 3 (03:45):
Right Mike, Except that one was very planned, and we
appreciate everything that you guys always have done for us,
and you know thrus through radio in general. I mean,
had it not been for that and you know, building
our career and you guys you know, being so you
know behind us all those years, we wouldn't have a
career forty years later. So I mean, we are grateful
(04:08):
that we have always gotten to work with you guys
and that you believed in us way back when.
Speaker 1 (04:13):
Well, but you and Mark, I mean Mark Kendall.
Speaker 4 (04:15):
Of course, you guys are incredible writers and you know,
laying down songs like save Your Love and rock Me
and what was that blues.
Speaker 1 (04:26):
Song I used to love from you guys? We didn't
get to play it as well.
Speaker 3 (04:29):
Oh was that House of brookn Long?
Speaker 4 (04:32):
Oh God almighty, what a great song that was as well.
You know, so you've got enough in the in the
catalog there to keep going for a long time and
to keep a set certainly rocking all night long, no
question about it.
Speaker 3 (04:48):
Uh Yeah, it's getting harder and harder for doing a
headline show to you know, kind of compact it into
ninety minutes because there's always a couple of tunes you
wish you could play. So I mean that it's not
a terrible problem to have, I can believe you.
Speaker 4 (05:04):
Me. Well, you guys like to stretch it out too,
you know, so some of those songs turn out to
be from four minutes to seven minutes.
Speaker 1 (05:12):
And so I always used to love that.
Speaker 4 (05:14):
But uh, you know, I saw Michael as I was,
you know, going through some great white information here that
that you for a minute, there were also playing in
another one of my favorite bands, and that was Night Ranger.
I mean, who doesn't get along with Jack Blades, right, So,
oh my goodness.
Speaker 3 (05:33):
Yeah, I mean they were instrumental in getting us out
on the road in eighty seven to help us break
the song rock Me. I mean we did about forty
dates with them, which led to a month We're Twisted,
and then ten and a half months with White Snake
on the big record. So you know, that's when we
met Jack and the boys, and it was just kind
of one of the symbiosis you know, between all of
(05:54):
us was great right off the bat. Northern California boy
just like I was, and as it turned out. When
Great White took a break for a while in two
thousand and one, Blades called me up and said, what
are you doing? I said, well, you know, I was
doing session work, you know, recording this guy, recording that guy.
And he goes, you want to come.
Speaker 2 (06:11):
Play with us for a little while, and I said, sure, man,
I'll give it a go. And after about four or
five dates, they just decided they're going to, you know,
stick with me and and ended up being almost four years.
Speaker 4 (06:24):
Wow, whoa, there you go. Yeah, I'm pretty sure I
think I saw you with night Ranger at Freedom Hill.
Speaker 1 (06:33):
Found that mistaken a few years back.
Speaker 3 (06:37):
Yeah, sometime in that two thousand and three to two
thousand seven range.
Speaker 1 (06:41):
Yeah, there you go.
Speaker 4 (06:43):
But the the thing I saw was the engineering that
you did with Shawn Blades. Now we have a place
in our heart in Detroit for the Damn Yankees, which
was Shaw Blades and NuGen.
Speaker 1 (06:57):
I really was not aware that.
Speaker 4 (06:59):
Shawn Blade It had got together to do an album
outside of the Damn Yankees.
Speaker 1 (07:04):
So did that ever come out? I got to look
that up.
Speaker 3 (07:08):
Oh yeah, no, no, that did really well. In fact,
you know the music, it's funny because you don't think
about it necessarily being a lot of hits on the radio,
but a lot of those songs got placed in TV
and movies. You know, I'm sitting there watching Californication one time,
and I'm here, you know, the the opening strains to
the cover they did of California Dream, and I'm going, hey,
(07:30):
wait a minute, I mixed that track.
Speaker 1 (07:32):
Wow, all right, well yeah, I got to look that
at them up.
Speaker 4 (07:35):
Man.
Speaker 1 (07:35):
Yeah, that's for sure.
Speaker 3 (07:37):
Yeah, it's it's called Influences and it's all seventies and
sixties covered. Oh my god, yeah, I mean Simon and Garfuncle, Buffalo, Springfield,
I mean it. Yes, it covers the gamut.
Speaker 1 (07:52):
It's my wheelhouse right there.
Speaker 4 (07:54):
So you know, let's face a great White over the
years has had some interchangeable members, There's no.
Speaker 1 (08:02):
Question about that.
Speaker 4 (08:03):
But who's with you right now, Michael as your touring Well.
Speaker 3 (08:10):
Yeah, well, you know, we've got the three originals and myself,
Mark Kendall and Audie does Brown drums, and our bass
player Scott Snyder has been with us for almost fifteen years,
and our newest vocalist, Brett Carlisle has been with us
for almost three now, and he's such a great fit
as a young kid compared to a bunch of old
(08:32):
dinosaurs like us. But you know, he he loves the
music and he totally gets it. And one thing I
will say beyond you know, his actual vocal talent is
he is a great study of the melodies and he
respects them very closely. So when you go to hear
a Great White song, you kind of want to hear
(08:53):
what it sounded like on the record. And he is
great at putting his own sonic, you know, because his
voice sounds different than anybody else's. But he's singing the
melodies like they are on the record, and I think
people are really connecting with that, saying, Okay, the songs
sound like they sounded thirty years ago, you know. So
it's a lot of fun. Great little dude, he got
(09:16):
a fantastic attitude. He's just he was loving being out
there and we're having a blast.
Speaker 4 (09:22):
Well when I when I was looking at some videos,
you can see that Brent embraces it.
Speaker 3 (09:28):
You know.
Speaker 4 (09:29):
They you guys have have obviously, and Brent has has
made it his own.
Speaker 1 (09:34):
So you know, he he.
Speaker 4 (09:36):
You could just tell he's got that confidence up there
that he can deliver the song, and and it sounds,
you know, fairly close to everything you guys have ever done.
So it sounds like you've got you know, the unit
in place now for quite a while. And you know,
great White just keeps on traveling and making music. And
(09:59):
what about making new music? I saw that you weren't
sitting on your laurels. You know, you've made some new
albums over the years. What have you been doing these days?
Have you been thinking about it? Working on it?
Speaker 1 (10:11):
What's the story?
Speaker 3 (10:12):
Oh? Yeah, well, we're Mark Mark and I've been working
on some stuff and then we've you know, had Brett over,
you know, working on a couple of things. What we're
planning on during this time around is recording you know,
three or four at a time, releasing those, and then
when we have twelve or thirteen, we'll compile it as
a complete album. But in the meantime, you know, give
(10:33):
people new music like every five to six months. And
it's just it's just the way people absorb music these days.
It's different. I mean, I know you experienced the same
thing growing up. The other day on an interview, I
said to a guy, it's not like it was when
we were in high school and we're playing Zeppelin four
in its entirety, you know, over and over and over again,
(10:54):
ingesting the entire album. You know. Now it's just kind
of like I want to hear that song and then
I want to move on to something else. So it's, uh,
we're just adopting to the change in in the palette
for the public. But we're working on it. We're hoping
to get in the studio sometime late summer early fall
and get that stuff out there. You know, well, yeah,
(11:18):
because it's it's still fun to write songs.
Speaker 4 (11:21):
Yeah, I would imagine that Guys like yourself and Mark
especially to h it's in your blood. You have to
do it. It just comes out and and you're right.
Nowadays the industry is completely different. You can put stuff
out like that and uh and get people, you know,
almost motivated. It takes almost that long and by the
(11:42):
time the album comes out, it's almost perfect timing.
Speaker 1 (11:45):
But you know, you.
Speaker 4 (11:47):
Mentioned Zeppelin four, and boy, I'll tell you one of
my highlight moments with Great White was when you guys
put out some of that Zeppelin music on disc.
Speaker 1 (11:57):
Do you still do any of that when you're out
there live?
Speaker 3 (12:03):
We haven't done it in quite a while. But you know,
during Sanchek, I'm always playing all of My Love and
then everybody else jumped in, you know, so we certainly
could play that one. So maybe I'll have to mention
it to the to the boy saying, you know, we
was at a long set. We should maybe think about
an encore or something would be fun.
Speaker 4 (12:20):
I mean, that was a real highlight of I mean
I thought for a minute there we did the Collective
of Us and the station did a an afternoon at
the IRAQ Lounge, and I thought it was.
Speaker 1 (12:37):
It acoustic Zeppelin set, wasn't it? Yeah? I think it was.
Speaker 3 (12:41):
Yeah, yeah, it was primarily Zeppelin. I think the only
great white thing we did was Once Been Twice Shy.
Speaker 4 (12:47):
Yeah, which is my next question about Once Bitten Twice Shy.
That was not a big hit for Ian Hunter by
any means, but somehow you took that song and made
it your own. I mean, you own that song. There's
no doubt. I'm sure Ian was happy with the checks
when they were rolling in.
Speaker 3 (13:06):
Oh yeah, oh yeah.
Speaker 1 (13:08):
Did he ever time you and say hey, thank you guys?
Speaker 3 (13:12):
Well it was interesting. He was on the Bob Covern Show,
you know, Dear Bob. We loved him. Yeah, me rest
in peace with the rock line thing he had Ian on.
And you know, Bob is the you know, excitable guy.
I always love that about him. You know, he's very
much a student, you know, a scholar about all kinds
of music, where it came from and everything. So he asked, Ian,
(13:35):
you know, what do you think of all the bands
that have done versions of your songs? And he's talking
about this and that, and he gets to the point
where he says, and hey, how about that great White
doing what's been try shy and Ian and the single
sacent and said he was all.
Speaker 4 (13:49):
Right, No, well that meant it was way better than
he ever wanted it to be.
Speaker 1 (13:56):
That's perhaps you would.
Speaker 3 (13:59):
I can think that, Doug, thank you.
Speaker 1 (14:03):
I think so tell you the truth.
Speaker 4 (14:05):
So can you take me back a little history of
Michael when when you you were not the first guitar
player in the band, right, you joined after what was
your hitt? It was?
Speaker 3 (14:20):
It's kind of interesting. I met them in the studio
in eighty three. I was working as a staff engineer
and they came in to record the first record ANIMI.
After that record was released and went on tour with
Judas Priest the Defender of the Faith tour for about
five months, and then they came back off the road
and decided they were going to do a second record,
and it was at that point that the band was
(14:42):
dropped by am I. So you know, they came back
in to start recording demos for the next record they
were going to put out themselves, and you know, they
they said, well, you know, maybe these songs in a
little keyboard or an extra you know, rhythm guitar here
and there, and you know, and I just raised my
hand and said, I'm that guy. I do that, you know.
(15:04):
So it was very easy and seamless to do that,
you know, to be working on the materials as a
technical guy and then also as a creative guy. So
you know, we went out and did the clubs again
and eventually got resigned by Capitol. In the summer of
eighty six, they re released Shot in the Dark on Capitol,
(15:29):
but all the time they were looking forward to the
next record. So we were writing, probably in the fall
of eighty six, to do all the music for What's Bitten,
and we got into the studio and started to record it,
and they just turned to me and said well, you know,
you're officially in the band now, right, And I said, awesome,
(15:51):
let's go. So it all happened very organically.
Speaker 4 (15:54):
Wow, And you remember what that first song was, you
might have actually been working can I?
Speaker 3 (16:02):
Uh? As far as compositionally speaking, one of the first
tunes was what do You Do for Love? From Shot
in the Dark. But one of the first songs we
worked on, uh for Once Bitten was Mistreeter and Lady
Red Light. And then I remember there was a time
we decided we wanted to do kind of a long
(16:24):
form face the Day, which was like the old Angels song,
you know, we had that dynamic, you know, big and
and and and very intimate during the birth and things
like that. And Mark at this guitar riff for Rocky
and I said, okay, let's do you know, let's let's
develop that. Let's keep going, you know, and you know,
how about this for a B section and all of
(16:46):
a sudden like jam on chorus and we brought that
to the rest of the band. They're kind of looking
at us, you know, like bugs crawling over our ears.
Speaker 2 (16:54):
Up what do we do with that?
Speaker 3 (16:55):
And I go, no, I got this idea for the
drums and it'll be a basy So before we knew it,
we had recorded that, and uh, I think everybody was
still kind of the jury was out until they heard
the entire finish thing and they all just looked at
each other and went, OMG, this is this isn't it?
Speaker 1 (17:17):
You know?
Speaker 3 (17:17):
It's really just like it's it's it's what we are,
it's who we are. And I often say that if
I had one of our songs in a time capsule,
would be that one.
Speaker 4 (17:28):
Yeah, because a boy, I'll tell you it has stood
the test of time on top of it.
Speaker 1 (17:33):
But I mean we played everything but the label off
that thing.
Speaker 4 (17:36):
I mean, that album blew up it really, it really
is true. So so I don't want to, you know,
I don't want to dig deep into the past. But
with Jack's passing, Michael kind of leaves you with the
legacy now the band, I mean completely, it's all yours.
Speaker 1 (17:58):
And I was just wondering, you.
Speaker 4 (18:00):
Know, did you feel I mean I don't want him
say a siar relief, but did you feel you know,
a sense of calmness or you know now we can
go forward, don't have to look behind us anymore?
Speaker 3 (18:15):
You know, I think you know looking behind and know
where you've been is never a bad thing. You know.
I think a lot of a lot of people kind
of like are connected with the idea of things that
happened between twenty eleven and ultimately at the time of
Jack's passing. You know, our relationship had become acrimonious, but
I you know, I tell people, you know, straight up front.
(18:38):
I mean we were you know, during the time when
things were going crazy between eighty six and you know,
two thousand. You know, Jack and I were very close.
We're very besties. You know, we had the same kind
of warp sense of humor, and you know, so for
that part of it, you know, when things started to
go awry with him and his you know, addictions that
(19:01):
kind of took away that thing are that closeness. But
you know, that's certainly something that I don't discount by
any means, and I think it had you know, it
was a good contribution to what we were as a band.
You know, our relationship well.
Speaker 4 (19:19):
Certainly part of the legacy now, and the legacy is
going to continue to live on because you guys are
rocking in. You'll be here at the Capitol Theater Friday,
May second, Great White in Flint. That should be a
spectacular night and look for them all summer long. But Michael,
thank you so much for spending some time with us.
(19:39):
Michael Lardie, guitar player from Great White. We appreciate the
time here at w LZ and man have a great
summer and we'll look forward to seeing you there in Flint.
Speaker 1 (19:48):
Man, that's going to be a big night right on.
Speaker 3 (19:51):
Thank you so much, Doug, and thank you know everyone
at the station all these years for being behind the band.
I really mean that. You know, without you guys, we
wouldn't have a career forty years later. So you know,
a lot of love to all you.
Speaker 1 (20:05):
Yeah, thank you Mike, and have a great show.
Speaker 3 (20:07):
You got it.
Speaker 1 (20:08):
Have a great day, all right, Michael, you two now,
thanks for joining us. Bye bye,
Yeah, either Detroit Wheels.
Speaker 2 (00:01):
Has that Douglas.
Speaker 1 (00:02):
Yes, it is hi, Doug. It's Michael Lardy, Michael, Michael Lardi.
It is good to talk to you, my friend.
Speaker 3 (00:09):
Good.
Speaker 2 (00:10):
It's been a while.
Speaker 4 (00:11):
Yeah, it's good to talk to you. A guitar player
extraordinary from Great White. We've done a lot over the years.
Speaker 3 (00:18):
And just indeed we have.
Speaker 1 (00:21):
It's good to see you still rocket out there. Brother.
Speaker 3 (00:23):
I was gonna say, nobody's told us to go home yet,
so you know we're we're still having fun doing it. Yeah.
Speaker 1 (00:28):
Well, same with me.
Speaker 4 (00:29):
I've been around a while now. Some people say I've
been around too long.
Speaker 1 (00:33):
But you know, I'm still going. So I'm enjoying it
right now.
Speaker 4 (00:37):
It's my fiftieth year of them, believe it or not, Michael,
and I'm enjoying it more now, I think than before.
Speaker 2 (00:43):
So and it think that.
Speaker 3 (00:44):
Might be from just a fact we appreciate it more,
you know, the older we get. There's there's a thing
about it that that tastes a little sweeter like a
well aged wine.
Speaker 4 (00:55):
Yeah, and it's and it's great to get together with
you because it's been a while and you guys are
coming into town to the capital Theater coming up on Friday, May.
Speaker 1 (01:04):
Second, Great White in Flint.
Speaker 4 (01:06):
This could be a movie Mike, because they don't get
they don't get very big acts, you know, hanging out
in Flint these days, but except for maybe the machine shot.
But it's good to see the Capitol Theater putting some
big bands in there, like you guys, and you know,
we're pretty excited to have you rolling into town. So
(01:27):
the summer's coming. What else have you guys got planned
this year?
Speaker 3 (01:32):
It's just dates, date states. I mean, we're so lucky.
We ended up doing it somewhere between forty and fifty
dates a year, and of course Summer risks sort of
the high season, so that's probably where we do. About
fifty five sixty percent of the shows that we do
is over the summer months. So we're looking forward to
(01:54):
We're doing M three a couple of days after you
guys over in Baltimore, and then a couple out in
California after that, and then uh kind of swim around
the Midwest for a while and then just keep keep going,
you know, bouncing. And that's the cool thing about doing
fly dates, no hours. You can pretty much go anywhere,
(02:16):
you know, and you know, if you do back to
back shows, it can be and you can do Florida
one day and then Ohio the next, and then you know,
Montana the day after that.
Speaker 4 (02:28):
Yeah, well that's great because it's getting harder and harder
to find classic rock bands, especially from the eighties.
Speaker 1 (02:34):
So you know, we salute you.
Speaker 4 (02:36):
Guys and still being out there and and continuing to
rock on an extremely high level.
Speaker 1 (02:42):
I might add as well, but well, you.
Speaker 3 (02:45):
Know, I will I will tell you. You know, it's
a Detroit Radio did us as solid back in the
day we were trying to get you know, past that
you know thing of you know, selling eighty two hundred
thousand records and believe it or not, I don't know
if you remember this, but Wheels actually was the station
(03:07):
to debut the song rock Me.
Speaker 4 (03:10):
Oh yeah, no, I was there absolutely, and if you
remember correctly, it was a rough mix pre harmonica.
Speaker 1 (03:19):
Oh wow.
Speaker 4 (03:20):
Now I don't remember that, but we that was you know,
one of the things that the original Wheels used to
do was, uh, you know, go out there and dig
out those you know, those exclusives you know that people
didn't have, and the record companies would jump up and
down and go crazy and cease and desist notes and
(03:43):
on the.
Speaker 1 (03:43):
Good old days of rock radio.
Speaker 3 (03:45):
Right Mike, Except that one was very planned, and we
appreciate everything that you guys always have done for us,
and you know thrus through radio in general. I mean,
had it not been for that and you know, building
our career and you guys you know, being so you
know behind us all those years, we wouldn't have a
career forty years later. So I mean, we are grateful
(04:08):
that we have always gotten to work with you guys
and that you believed in us way back when.
Speaker 1 (04:13):
Well, but you and Mark, I mean Mark Kendall.
Speaker 4 (04:15):
Of course, you guys are incredible writers and you know,
laying down songs like save Your Love and rock Me
and what was that blues.
Speaker 1 (04:26):
Song I used to love from you guys? We didn't
get to play it as well.
Speaker 3 (04:29):
Oh was that House of brookn Long?
Speaker 4 (04:32):
Oh God almighty, what a great song that was as well.
You know, so you've got enough in the in the
catalog there to keep going for a long time and
to keep a set certainly rocking all night long, no
question about it.
Speaker 3 (04:48):
Uh Yeah, it's getting harder and harder for doing a
headline show to you know, kind of compact it into
ninety minutes because there's always a couple of tunes you
wish you could play. So I mean that it's not
a terrible problem to have, I can believe you.
Speaker 4 (05:04):
Me. Well, you guys like to stretch it out too,
you know, so some of those songs turn out to
be from four minutes to seven minutes.
Speaker 1 (05:12):
And so I always used to love that.
Speaker 4 (05:14):
But uh, you know, I saw Michael as I was,
you know, going through some great white information here that
that you for a minute, there were also playing in
another one of my favorite bands, and that was Night Ranger.
I mean, who doesn't get along with Jack Blades, right, So,
oh my goodness.
Speaker 3 (05:33):
Yeah, I mean they were instrumental in getting us out
on the road in eighty seven to help us break
the song rock Me. I mean we did about forty
dates with them, which led to a month We're Twisted,
and then ten and a half months with White Snake
on the big record. So you know, that's when we
met Jack and the boys, and it was just kind
of one of the symbiosis you know, between all of
(05:54):
us was great right off the bat. Northern California boy
just like I was, and as it turned out. When
Great White took a break for a while in two
thousand and one, Blades called me up and said, what
are you doing? I said, well, you know, I was
doing session work, you know, recording this guy, recording that guy.
And he goes, you want to come.
Speaker 2 (06:11):
Play with us for a little while, and I said, sure, man,
I'll give it a go. And after about four or
five dates, they just decided they're going to, you know,
stick with me and and ended up being almost four years.
Speaker 4 (06:24):
Wow, whoa, there you go. Yeah, I'm pretty sure I
think I saw you with night Ranger at Freedom Hill.
Speaker 1 (06:33):
Found that mistaken a few years back.
Speaker 3 (06:37):
Yeah, sometime in that two thousand and three to two
thousand seven range.
Speaker 1 (06:41):
Yeah, there you go.
Speaker 4 (06:43):
But the the thing I saw was the engineering that
you did with Shawn Blades. Now we have a place
in our heart in Detroit for the Damn Yankees, which
was Shaw Blades and NuGen.
Speaker 1 (06:57):
I really was not aware that.
Speaker 4 (06:59):
Shawn Blade It had got together to do an album
outside of the Damn Yankees.
Speaker 1 (07:04):
So did that ever come out? I got to look
that up.
Speaker 3 (07:08):
Oh yeah, no, no, that did really well. In fact,
you know the music, it's funny because you don't think
about it necessarily being a lot of hits on the radio,
but a lot of those songs got placed in TV
and movies. You know, I'm sitting there watching Californication one time,
and I'm here, you know, the the opening strains to
the cover they did of California Dream, and I'm going, hey,
(07:30):
wait a minute, I mixed that track.
Speaker 1 (07:32):
Wow, all right, well yeah, I got to look that
at them up.
Speaker 4 (07:35):
Man.
Speaker 1 (07:35):
Yeah, that's for sure.
Speaker 3 (07:37):
Yeah, it's it's called Influences and it's all seventies and
sixties covered. Oh my god, yeah, I mean Simon and Garfuncle, Buffalo, Springfield,
I mean it. Yes, it covers the gamut.
Speaker 1 (07:52):
It's my wheelhouse right there.
Speaker 4 (07:54):
So you know, let's face a great White over the
years has had some interchangeable members, There's no.
Speaker 1 (08:02):
Question about that.
Speaker 4 (08:03):
But who's with you right now, Michael as your touring Well.
Speaker 3 (08:10):
Yeah, well, you know, we've got the three originals and myself,
Mark Kendall and Audie does Brown drums, and our bass
player Scott Snyder has been with us for almost fifteen years,
and our newest vocalist, Brett Carlisle has been with us
for almost three now, and he's such a great fit
as a young kid compared to a bunch of old
(08:32):
dinosaurs like us. But you know, he he loves the
music and he totally gets it. And one thing I
will say beyond you know, his actual vocal talent is
he is a great study of the melodies and he
respects them very closely. So when you go to hear
a Great White song, you kind of want to hear
(08:53):
what it sounded like on the record. And he is
great at putting his own sonic, you know, because his
voice sounds different than anybody else's. But he's singing the
melodies like they are on the record, and I think
people are really connecting with that, saying, Okay, the songs
sound like they sounded thirty years ago, you know. So
it's a lot of fun. Great little dude, he got
(09:16):
a fantastic attitude. He's just he was loving being out
there and we're having a blast.
Speaker 4 (09:22):
Well when I when I was looking at some videos,
you can see that Brent embraces it.
Speaker 3 (09:28):
You know.
Speaker 4 (09:29):
They you guys have have obviously, and Brent has has
made it his own.
Speaker 1 (09:34):
So you know, he he.
Speaker 4 (09:36):
You could just tell he's got that confidence up there
that he can deliver the song, and and it sounds,
you know, fairly close to everything you guys have ever done.
So it sounds like you've got you know, the unit
in place now for quite a while. And you know,
great White just keeps on traveling and making music. And
(09:59):
what about making new music? I saw that you weren't
sitting on your laurels. You know, you've made some new
albums over the years. What have you been doing these days?
Have you been thinking about it? Working on it?
Speaker 1 (10:11):
What's the story?
Speaker 3 (10:12):
Oh? Yeah, well, we're Mark Mark and I've been working
on some stuff and then we've you know, had Brett over,
you know, working on a couple of things. What we're
planning on during this time around is recording you know,
three or four at a time, releasing those, and then
when we have twelve or thirteen, we'll compile it as
a complete album. But in the meantime, you know, give
(10:33):
people new music like every five to six months. And
it's just it's just the way people absorb music these days.
It's different. I mean, I know you experienced the same
thing growing up. The other day on an interview, I
said to a guy, it's not like it was when
we were in high school and we're playing Zeppelin four
in its entirety, you know, over and over and over again,
(10:54):
ingesting the entire album. You know. Now it's just kind
of like I want to hear that song and then
I want to move on to something else. So it's, uh,
we're just adopting to the change in in the palette
for the public. But we're working on it. We're hoping
to get in the studio sometime late summer early fall
and get that stuff out there. You know, well, yeah,
(11:18):
because it's it's still fun to write songs.
Speaker 4 (11:21):
Yeah, I would imagine that Guys like yourself and Mark
especially to h it's in your blood. You have to
do it. It just comes out and and you're right.
Nowadays the industry is completely different. You can put stuff
out like that and uh and get people, you know,
almost motivated. It takes almost that long and by the
(11:42):
time the album comes out, it's almost perfect timing.
Speaker 1 (11:45):
But you know, you.
Speaker 4 (11:47):
Mentioned Zeppelin four, and boy, I'll tell you one of
my highlight moments with Great White was when you guys
put out some of that Zeppelin music on disc.
Speaker 1 (11:57):
Do you still do any of that when you're out
there live?
Speaker 3 (12:03):
We haven't done it in quite a while. But you know,
during Sanchek, I'm always playing all of My Love and
then everybody else jumped in, you know, so we certainly
could play that one. So maybe I'll have to mention
it to the to the boy saying, you know, we
was at a long set. We should maybe think about
an encore or something would be fun.
Speaker 4 (12:20):
I mean, that was a real highlight of I mean
I thought for a minute there we did the Collective
of Us and the station did a an afternoon at
the IRAQ Lounge, and I thought it was.
Speaker 1 (12:37):
It acoustic Zeppelin set, wasn't it? Yeah? I think it was.
Speaker 3 (12:41):
Yeah, yeah, it was primarily Zeppelin. I think the only
great white thing we did was Once Been Twice Shy.
Speaker 4 (12:47):
Yeah, which is my next question about Once Bitten Twice Shy.
That was not a big hit for Ian Hunter by
any means, but somehow you took that song and made
it your own. I mean, you own that song. There's
no doubt. I'm sure Ian was happy with the checks
when they were rolling in.
Speaker 3 (13:06):
Oh yeah, oh yeah.
Speaker 1 (13:08):
Did he ever time you and say hey, thank you guys?
Speaker 3 (13:12):
Well it was interesting. He was on the Bob Covern Show,
you know, Dear Bob. We loved him. Yeah, me rest
in peace with the rock line thing he had Ian on.
And you know, Bob is the you know, excitable guy.
I always love that about him. You know, he's very
much a student, you know, a scholar about all kinds
of music, where it came from and everything. So he asked, Ian,
(13:35):
you know, what do you think of all the bands
that have done versions of your songs? And he's talking
about this and that, and he gets to the point
where he says, and hey, how about that great White
doing what's been try shy and Ian and the single
sacent and said he was all.
Speaker 4 (13:49):
Right, No, well that meant it was way better than
he ever wanted it to be.
Speaker 1 (13:56):
That's perhaps you would.
Speaker 3 (13:59):
I can think that, Doug, thank you.
Speaker 1 (14:03):
I think so tell you the truth.
Speaker 4 (14:05):
So can you take me back a little history of
Michael when when you you were not the first guitar
player in the band, right, you joined after what was
your hitt? It was?
Speaker 3 (14:20):
It's kind of interesting. I met them in the studio
in eighty three. I was working as a staff engineer
and they came in to record the first record ANIMI.
After that record was released and went on tour with
Judas Priest the Defender of the Faith tour for about
five months, and then they came back off the road
and decided they were going to do a second record,
and it was at that point that the band was
(14:42):
dropped by am I. So you know, they came back
in to start recording demos for the next record they
were going to put out themselves, and you know, they
they said, well, you know, maybe these songs in a
little keyboard or an extra you know, rhythm guitar here
and there, and you know, and I just raised my
hand and said, I'm that guy. I do that, you know.
(15:04):
So it was very easy and seamless to do that,
you know, to be working on the materials as a
technical guy and then also as a creative guy. So
you know, we went out and did the clubs again
and eventually got resigned by Capitol. In the summer of
eighty six, they re released Shot in the Dark on Capitol,
(15:29):
but all the time they were looking forward to the
next record. So we were writing, probably in the fall
of eighty six, to do all the music for What's Bitten,
and we got into the studio and started to record it,
and they just turned to me and said well, you know,
you're officially in the band now, right, And I said, awesome,
(15:51):
let's go. So it all happened very organically.
Speaker 4 (15:54):
Wow, And you remember what that first song was, you
might have actually been working can I?
Speaker 3 (16:02):
Uh? As far as compositionally speaking, one of the first
tunes was what do You Do for Love? From Shot
in the Dark. But one of the first songs we
worked on, uh for Once Bitten was Mistreeter and Lady
Red Light. And then I remember there was a time
we decided we wanted to do kind of a long
(16:24):
form face the Day, which was like the old Angels song,
you know, we had that dynamic, you know, big and
and and and very intimate during the birth and things
like that. And Mark at this guitar riff for Rocky
and I said, okay, let's do you know, let's let's
develop that. Let's keep going, you know, and you know,
how about this for a B section and all of
(16:46):
a sudden like jam on chorus and we brought that
to the rest of the band. They're kind of looking
at us, you know, like bugs crawling over our ears.
Speaker 2 (16:54):
Up what do we do with that?
Speaker 3 (16:55):
And I go, no, I got this idea for the
drums and it'll be a basy So before we knew it,
we had recorded that, and uh, I think everybody was
still kind of the jury was out until they heard
the entire finish thing and they all just looked at
each other and went, OMG, this is this isn't it?
Speaker 1 (17:17):
You know?
Speaker 3 (17:17):
It's really just like it's it's it's what we are,
it's who we are. And I often say that if
I had one of our songs in a time capsule,
would be that one.
Speaker 4 (17:28):
Yeah, because a boy, I'll tell you it has stood
the test of time on top of it.
Speaker 1 (17:33):
But I mean we played everything but the label off
that thing.
Speaker 4 (17:36):
I mean, that album blew up it really, it really
is true. So so I don't want to, you know,
I don't want to dig deep into the past. But
with Jack's passing, Michael kind of leaves you with the
legacy now the band, I mean completely, it's all yours.
Speaker 1 (17:58):
And I was just wondering, you.
Speaker 4 (18:00):
Know, did you feel I mean I don't want him
say a siar relief, but did you feel you know,
a sense of calmness or you know now we can
go forward, don't have to look behind us anymore?
Speaker 3 (18:15):
You know, I think you know looking behind and know
where you've been is never a bad thing. You know.
I think a lot of a lot of people kind
of like are connected with the idea of things that
happened between twenty eleven and ultimately at the time of
Jack's passing. You know, our relationship had become acrimonious, but
I you know, I tell people, you know, straight up front.
(18:38):
I mean we were you know, during the time when
things were going crazy between eighty six and you know,
two thousand. You know, Jack and I were very close.
We're very besties. You know, we had the same kind
of warp sense of humor, and you know, so for
that part of it, you know, when things started to
go awry with him and his you know, addictions that
(19:01):
kind of took away that thing are that closeness. But
you know, that's certainly something that I don't discount by
any means, and I think it had you know, it
was a good contribution to what we were as a band.
You know, our relationship well.
Speaker 4 (19:19):
Certainly part of the legacy now, and the legacy is
going to continue to live on because you guys are
rocking in. You'll be here at the Capitol Theater Friday,
May second, Great White in Flint. That should be a
spectacular night and look for them all summer long. But Michael,
thank you so much for spending some time with us.
(19:39):
Michael Lardie, guitar player from Great White. We appreciate the
time here at w LZ and man have a great
summer and we'll look forward to seeing you there in Flint.
Speaker 1 (19:48):
Man, that's going to be a big night right on.
Speaker 3 (19:51):
Thank you so much, Doug, and thank you know everyone
at the station all these years for being behind the band.
I really mean that. You know, without you guys, we
wouldn't have a career forty years later. So you know,
a lot of love to all you.
Speaker 1 (20:05):
Yeah, thank you Mike, and have a great show.
Speaker 3 (20:07):
You got it.
Speaker 1 (20:08):
Have a great day, all right, Michael, you two now,
thanks for joining us. Bye bye,
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