Rod Stewart Article about tour with Stevie
 

Two-time Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Rod Stewart missed being enshrined with his old band, the Faces, in April in Cleveland because he came down with the flu. But he'll be here tonight to launch the Heart & Soul Tour with Stevie Nicks at The Q. Stewart, 67, spoke to us by phone before the Rock Hall festivities.

Stevie Nicks and you toured together last year, too. Why is this a good pairing?

Well, we're both old people. [laughs]

I've always admired her voice. Technically, she's not a great singer -- same as me. But she has a lot of personality in her voice.

We tried it last year, and we got some great crowds. Sellout crowds. So we thought we'd do it again.

The combination of the two of us seems to work. She has a tremendous female following, and she's one of the few support acts where the house is nearly full when the curtain goes up, which is great. Makes it easier for me.

We've been friends for a long time.


Before this, did you cross paths often?

She tells stories about coming to my house in Beverly Hills years ago. But I can't remember. Must've been too drunk.

We do a couple of numbers together onstage. We do "Leather and Lace." And I think we're going to do "Young Turks" or something. I'm not sure yet.


Beyond the tour, what are you excited about in the coming months?

I have a Christmas album coming out. It's produced by David Foster. That'll be coming out at Christmas! [laughs]


Good timing.

My autobiography is also coming out at Christmas.

And the best news is that I have a studio album coming out next year. How's that for a workload for a 67-year-old?


Impressive! What musical direction are you headed in on the new album?

Maybe an updated "Gasoline Alley" [Stewart's seminal 1970 album]. When I signed with Universal, the head of Universal [Lucian Grainge] said to me, "All I want you to do is make an updated 'Gasoline Alley.' "

So that's what I started doing. But I've tackled what I call grown-up problems. There are songs with advice to my kids, and I've written a song about divorce. I haven't written anything like "Hot Legs" or "Do Ya Think I'm Sexy?"

It's a pretty grown-up album. There are hardly any ballads on it at the moment. But I still have a few months to record. I might just keep working at it. We've got 15 tracks finished.


Does the album have a title?

I haven't got one yet. We have a bloody good version of [the Elmore James oldie] "Shake Your Moneymaker," which we also do live. But that isn't a good representation of the album. It's not a blues album.


How is your voice holding up?

Couldn't be better. I play Vegas three times a week [at Caesars Palace]. It's brilliant. There isn't a bad seat in the house. The sound is beautiful. And they look after me like I was Elvis. I'm loving it.

http://www.cleveland.com/popmusic/in...hit_the_r.html

so they're not co-headliners, she's his supporting act? Well, I guess if she's going on first...... That is so sad somehow.

^She's crying all the way to the bank. ;)

I wonder what tune will get lopped out of the digest version of her setlist.I hope she keeps the new tunes.Remember"This is not a hits tour" as she said.

Maybe Rod will ax some of his tunes to give her equal time.

I meant sad for me, as a fan. : (

Clearly she wouldn't be doing this if there was nothing in it for her. But I dunno.... I just don't see Lindsey ever sinking to that, money or not. Again, different values. Sigh.

I think I would rather open for Rod Stewart than Tina Turner. :cool:

why?

(frankly, i think that experience, when he was in his early 40s, pretty much soured Lindsey towards ever doing it again, and i bet he wouldn't consider doing something like that now in his 60s. although he's not above other ways of making money... think all those various Holiday Road-containing commercials :laugh:)

Oh, he's a charmer.

"It's great because she can fill up at least half the house before I arrive onstage!"

Sure ya have, pal.

The fact that Nicks paired with this guy last year is bad enough. She had to do it again?!

Why doesn't she go out with any number of dozens of other male singers, any of whom would probably leap at the chance—not to fill the hall but to sing with her?

• Dave Matthews
• Chris Isaak
• Billy Corgan
• Art Garfunkel
• Adam Levine
• Phil Collins
• Michael McDonald
• Prince
• Todd Rundgren
• Meat Loaf
• George Michael

Maybe even Neil Young, Peter Gabriel, David Crosby, Elton John, or Eric Clapton might want to tour with Stevie. You don't know until you ask (or pitch the idea). But Rod's just an unfunny creep.

Or do a tour with Bette Midler. Imagine how fun that would be for both of them, and one of them wouldn't be talking to the press about how the other is worthwhile because she "nearly fills the hall" before the main performance.

Actually, I am being just a smidge sarcastic... but at the end of the day, I think the audiences for Rod and Stevie overlap more than the audiences for Tina and Lindsey. At least with Rod and Stevie, there is a reasonable chance that you could hear their songs on the same radio station; not so with Tina and Lindsey. Also, although I find Tina Turner to be an amazing live performer, I think her style is way, way more Vegas than Rod, and that's saying a lot! :lol: I can appreciate that Tina always fancied herself a rock chick at heart, but the reality is that her fans are more likely to be fans of Cher and Madonna than Lindsey.

I think it's interesting that last year, all the promotion was about how it was a "Heart and Soul" co-headliners tour. One could see Stevie was essentially opening for him, but it wasn't stated and indeed they seemed to make an effort to combat that notion in interviews.

However, unless this interview is atypical, this time around Rod is making sure to be very clear that Stevie is his support act.

I wonder what changed?

I know she is making a lot of money, but this is sort of sad.

She dropped a lot of her own dimes for IYD. I reckon these Rod shows are a godsend for her as they'lll allow the last two years to be in the black.

I never liked Rod. I like him even less now....

I also thought it funny that he said she had a large female audience. Stevie probably brings in more men than he does.

Michele

But I think Tina was just a little edgier in 1990 than she is today. Her show then was probably more substantial than Rod's show is now.

Neither is a particularly good fit for Lindsey though.

Michele