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April 30, 2009

GIVING AWAY GUITARS

The story so far.....my love for Gibson guitars and especially Les Pauls has been no secret for many years. Stemming all the way back to the pictures of Steve Jones playing an aged white custom with pin-up girls on it, my heart lifts when I hear those guitars played loud and hard. As I grew up, I realized that just about every record/band/artist that I loved had a Gibson involved somewhere. From Angus and the SG, through the Zeppelin/Page faded flame Paul and on to the Cantrell/Slash 90's, I began to understand the beauty and power of the marque. Bowie and Mick Ronson?....Les Paul. Noel and Oasis?....335. Synonymous with rock and roll. As I joined bands, formed bands, left bands and generally began making music, I played Les Pauls. My first was a black Standard that I still own. That guitar went all over the place when I was in Stimulator, got dropped, thrown, scratched and marked. But it never cracked or broke anywhere and still plays absolutely beautifully. It sits in one of my racks with my other Gibsons, and I love them all.

So now, in 2009, I find myself awaiting a protoytpe of a Billy Morrison model! Seems it will be part of the Inspired By line of axes. Yeah, it seems amazing to me too, but I have spent some time talking guitar specs/design with Gibson and worked up a killer paint job in Photoshop. In fact it was the paint job that got the "yes lets do this" green light for the whole affair. I am extremely excited and somewhat humbled by the whole thing, but its happening and I believe I have worked up a Les Paul for the next decade - something that will sound full and hard like a good rock rhythm guitar should sound. Something that will play easily and smoothly. Something that will retain an edge of rebelliousness, with a design that reflects my punk roots and rebellious streak. Something that will stand out and bling without being too shiny! I can't wait for people to see it.

Which brings me to next weeks Gibson Guitar events at two SAM ASH stores in SoCal. The dates are ONTARIO MILLS on May 6th and CITY OF INDUSTRY on May 7th. CLICK HERE TO SEE MORE DETAILS ON THE GIBSON WEBSITEEach night, Gibson will be hosting an event at the Sam Ash store, and I will be hanging out and giving some shit away! There will be 10 Gibson Swag Bags containing a bunch of wonderful swag from Gibson and Epiphone, as well as a signed Billy Morrison Inspired By Model poster. These will be given out via TWITTER. You do NOT have to be at the event to win a Swag Bag. All you have to do is CLICK HERE TO FOLLOW ME ON TWITTER and be watching for my clues and questions from 6.00pm on each night. I will give away the 10 Swag Bags over the course of the 2 hour event. I will also be giving away a guitar each night - an Epiphone Les Paul - but you HAVE to attend the event and be following me on Twitter. I will be hosting a live Scavenger Hunt with the clues and questions being sent out over Twitter. A process of elimination will bring us down to the final 3 contestants who will then be sent a clue to the guitars location. Of course I will also try to stream some live video on USTREAM but the last attempt at that didn't work so well!!

Thats it. Thats all she wrote. I am outta here (I better start dreaming up those questions!)

Peace

Billy

Posted by vivelerock at 07:50 AM

April 29, 2009

YOU SWINE!

The upcoming Camp Freddy show in Mexico has been cancelled due to the outbreak of Swine Flu currently sweeping the country. We are waiting to hear if the event will be rescheduled elsewhere on another date, but the trip to Cancun is off the table. Its a pity as we were all looking forward to a few days on the beach, but the situation in Mexico is serious and there was no option but to pull the show. Lets hope the authorities get that situation under some control.

Posted by vivelerock at 08:41 AM

April 24, 2009

A QUICKIE ON A FRIDAY

Its a quick update to throw a few facts and figures at the world. First and foremost, I can tell you that I'll be giving away an Epiphone Les Paul at each of the two Gibson events next month. They are at the Sam Ash stores of Ontario Mills and City Of Industry, May 6th and 7th respectively. You will need to be following me on Twitter - http://twitter.com/BillyMorrison - and you will need to have Twitter on your cell phone. I will be Tweeting live from the events and some of the Tweets will be clues. The winner will find the guitar and it will be ALL YOURS!! Other prizes, including some limited signed posters advertising my Billy Morrison model Les Paul will also be up for grabs and you don't have to be actually at the event to win those. Just follow me on Twitter and reply to the clues and questions for a chance to win.

I'll be DJing at a couple of Matt Sorum Velvet Lounge events in May. The 5th and the 12th at The Dragonfly and the Darling Stilettos will be performing both nights. And I will also be DJing at The Roxy on June 6th at the Chelsea Girls show. Lots of great rock music and fun times. And of course, we are off to Mexico with Camp Freddy for a show on May 18th. I will be going in early for a performance with the Stilettos on 17th and a day of scuba diving on 16th. I mean, why the fuck not, right???

That's all I got for you right now - gotta get outta here but back soon. have a great day all. And you have GOT to watch the video above - Rod Stewart and Jeff Beck onstage together again. Absolute fucking genius. Enjoy.

Billy

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Posted by vivelerock at 09:28 AM | Comments (4)

April 17, 2009

I GUESS WE CAN SAY SOMETHING NOW!

The article below appeared online today - so I guess we are off and running with all of this. If you are planning on coming to either of the Sam Ash appearances, I STRONGLY advise getting Twitter installed on your phone. I will be conducting a few fun experiments using the app and you will only get to join in if you are a) present at the event and b) have Twitter on your phone. Don't say you weren't warned! As far as the guitar goes, I have been sitting on this for a while now, and can't wait to show you guys pics. I have worked closely with Gibson on this guitar and await a prototype shortly to see if we are close with the specs. I know the artwork that I did in Photoshop absolutely fucking rocks. So with any luck, this Billy Morrison model will be both aesthetically stunning and a dream to play. So here's what we have so far...

Billy Morrison, scheduled to appear May 6 and May 7, 2009 in the Ontario Mills, CA and City of Industry, CA location respectively is best known as an English guitarist, singer and songwriter who plays with Los Angeles based band Camp Freddy. Morrison also fronts Circus Diablo and has hosted Indie 103.1’s Camp Freddy Radio with Dave Navarro in 2008. Morrison will be giving guests a sneak peak at his upcoming Inspired By Gibson USA model during his appearances where he will sign autographs and meet and greet his fans. Doug Aldrich from the mega-hit group Whitesnake will join Morrison at the two California locations.

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Posted by vivelerock at 10:38 AM | Comments (7)

April 15, 2009

DIARY OF A MADMAN

Saturday morning, and our usual dash to the airport held nothing out of the ordinary - late (ish), we screamed up Barham Blvd on our way to Burbank and our SouthWest flight to Sin City. I had been invited to go and celebrate Perry Farrell's 50th birthday at The Mirage Hotel and Casino, and I was one of a whole bunch of us that would be performing later that night. The voices inside my head were having a field day! Equal measure of 'humbled and happy that they even asked me' and 'I don't deserve this, maybe they made a mistake' resonated as we pulled up and parked the car. No time to over think it, we met up with my manager Rick and jumped on the plane. As far as flying goes, SouthWest is pretty much like the Greyhound bus of the skies. Always packed to bursting, we are shoe-horned in like cattle, and given a pack of stale peanuts for our enjoyment. But 50 mins later and we are touching down in the middle of the Nevada desert. No drama so far.

The Mirage. Never stayed there before. Home of a certain over-zealous tiger and some seriously 70's style decorating! The vibe is the same as most of the Casinos in Las Vegas... faux luxury and give us all yer money!! The casino floor was huge (not Venetian huge, but still very large) with the familiar sound of bankruptcy and despair filling our ears as we walked around. Outside in the gardens, however, it gets really nice. Waterfalls, landscaping, dolphins, grottos, bridges, pathways - it's a lush tropical paradise that must cost millions a month just to water!! And in the middle of all that jungle is the 'Bare' pool. A topless pool, roped off from the rest of the world. And yes, thats where the gig is happening. A constant live Twitter stream from both myself and Dave became the theme of the day. Pics and updates from everywhere - allowing a glimpse in real time into the days events.

Soundcheck gave me a new appreciation of how it must be at a Camp Freddy show. Hours and hours of fine tuning and many guests all waiting to do their songs and make sure it sounds ok. Usually, our soundchecks fly by for me, as I am not only playing every song but working out who's arrived, who sings what, and when, with who etc. On Saturday, I just kicked back as a guest performer, and I LIKED it!! No stress (at least, not for me - somebody else had all the stress that day!!) and some great moments. Watching the OG Janes Addiction run through songs and sound more powerful and trippy than ever before is a wonderful thing. My songs came and went with no drama and it was off to dinner at the stunningly fabulous Japonais restaurant.

Showtime! A thousand of Etty and Perry's closest friends jammed into the Bare Pool area in front of a really well executed stage, with lighting that would have made most tours cry in envy! The place looked fantastic. And over the next hour and a half, the audience were treated to a who's who of Rock and a what's what of classic and cool music. Porno For Pyro's performed together again. Killer! Sen Dog and Debbie Harry laid out an amazing version of 'Rapture' together. I played EMI with Mark McGrath, Rebel Yell and Eyes Without A Face with Billy Idol and Call Me with Debbie Harry. And of course, a show like this always has the 'Stage full of everyone' finale, and I grabbed a guitar for a beautifully chaotic version of the Stones 'Sympathy For The Devil' as Perry was given his cake, and proceeded to sing with all his friends.

I cannot imagine a better way to celebrate such a milestone birthday and I hope that Perry enjoyed himself even half as much as I know all his guests did! I am super greatful to have been invited and to have taken part in the performance. Gigs like that don't happen very often, but when they do, they become those special 'I was there' moments that only Rock And Roll can really produce. And guess what? .... I was there.

Billy

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Posted by vivelerock at 08:04 AM | Comments (2)

April 07, 2009

SHIFTING GEAR

My post title today just made me think of that song by Golden Earing in the 70's, "Radar Love". Had the absolutely wonderful lyric..."I been drivin' all night and I'm shifting gear". Huh. Oh well, that was a random thought. Whatever - here I am again! And I feel a shift in the energies at the moment. Perry's birthday party in Vegas is this weekend which should be a lot of fun (I miss that Dave Navarro guy! Haven't hung with him in a minute). We have the Camp Freddy trip to Mexico looming in May along with a couple more shows, and I will also be appearing at a couple of Gibson extravaganza thingies at some Sam Ash stores. Also in May - 6th and 7th I think. I'll give you more details when I get them, but it seems I'll be in Ontario Mills on 6th and City Of Industry on 7th. There's also a jam of some kind on April 25th here in LA - it might be a private thing, not sure. Again I'll let you know - it's to do with that movie "Heart Is A Drum Machine". I think I'm in it and they're having a party for it or something. Looking forward to letting lose with two or three announcements - paperwork is holding all three up - but for me its all wonderfully fun and exciting! Todays video is CLASSIC Ants in Japan.
Right. I'm off to go buy that Golden Earing song. See ya!

Billy

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Posted by vivelerock at 08:06 AM | Comments (4)

April 03, 2009

ROBERT "SPOONS" NIEHORSTER. RIP.

I want to take this opportunity to say goodbye to my old partner, Robert, who died in Thailand last week. Rob gave me my first job selling tee shirts in Camden Market and was responsible for my multiple trips to Bangkok, manufacturing clothes and selling them. Anyone who knew me back in the Camden days will also have known Rob. A shining light on the market, constantly smoking and cracking jokes, Rob had a huge heart. He tour-managed my band STIMULATOR, and he and I had many trips to Asia over the years. I remember the look on his face when I showed up at Camden after being missing for over a week. I had disappeared with all the money and shacked up in Kings Cross with a 'lower companion', smoking crack and getting into a bit of trouble. Eventually, 10 days later, I showed up back at Camden like nothing was wrong, with the 'companion' on my arm, and said..."Hey Rob. I'm back. Let's get to work." Rob just looked at me with compassion and said..."Billy. Get yourself clean again and you've still got your job." Shine on, Rob. You will be missed.

Peace

Billy

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Posted by vivelerock at 08:47 AM | Comments (8)