TD and Donny will be playing at the benefit for our friend Mike Tirelli as part of Snakebite, the Whitesnake tribute band. The really good news is that Mike is going to do a couple of songs with us (we rehearsed with him on Thursday night and he sounds amazing after a 3-month layoff), including a song we've never done with Snakebite - a cover of 'Jellyroll' by Blue Murder.

The bad news is that we've been scheduled for a slot pretty much right at the beginning of the show. Our stage time is around 3:30 and we're doing a very short set, about 30 minutes. But this is for a very worthy cause, and a lot of bands that wanted to do the benefit couldn't even get in, so we're glad that at least we have a slot to do our bit to help Mike out.

The benefit takes place tomorrow, February 8, at Mulcahy's Pub Centereach. The show kicks off at 3:00, so get there early to see a lot of great bands and help one of the best vocalists ever to come out of Long Island.

...Let us make a suggestion as to how to spend your Saturday night.

Our friends Rocker will be appearing tomorrow night at the Courthouse Bar & Grille in Massapequa Park. they start at midnight, and they rock pretty good.

If you got out to see them, tell 'em that Diesel sent ya.

Today brings sad news for anyone who was a part of the Long Island rock scene in the 80s. Barry Ambrosio, who managed the Sparks clubs in Huntington and Deer Park, died today.


Barry worked for Deep Purple, Rainbow and Bon Jovi in the 80s, and he was instrumental in bringing a lot of talent to the world - he was the one who brought Joe Lynn Turner and Bobby Rondinelli to the attention of Richie Blackmore by hooking them up in Rainbow. He was also a friend of unsigned bands on LI, working with a number of unsigned acts. Among the bands he befriended and helped out in numerous ways was my band at the time, Up All Night.

I can't begin to count the nights that he'd put in a full shift at Sparks, running the stage and mixing for 3 or 4 bands And instead of heading home at the end of the night like sane people, we'd just hang out until the sun came up, talking guitars and bands and old records, anything having to do with rock. Barry was one of those rare people that went around the world with some of the biggest stars in the industry, but could still get excited if an unsigned local band had a good night at his club. He even tried his hand at managing a band called Fallout, who I became friends with and even ended up in a band called 20FTWide with their singer Rich Orofino.

Barry was known by the bands who worked with him for being a bit crabby at times, but his heart was always in the right place. At the end of the day there were few other people I'd want running my stage or making sure that the details of a show were being tended to. Even though I hadn't seen Barry in a number of years (he moved to Florida some time ago), he was one of those people whose name came up often when talk swung around to the LI rock scene in the 80s.


We're thinking about you today, Barry. Thank you for all you did for rock and roll.

We've just been added to the playlist of another internet radio show - this one is the show of a friend of ours to the north...

The show is called 'Sunday NIte TalknRock from the SnowBank', and it's hosted by our old friend the Polar Bear. The Bear is a guy who hooked me up with a couple of guitars last year, and you know that makes him a hero around here.

The show is on every Sunday evening from 6:30 to 9:30, and you can find it at the web site mixposure.com - home of our old buddy Dazed.

Thanks to The Bear for thinking of us. Now get over there and listen, dammit!

Well, for the second time since the Labor Day weekend, we went by Pub 454 and it was shut down cold. Last night the only thing in the parking lot was a dumpster.

I think it's safe to say that 454 has become a victim of the economy and closed down.

Too bad. 454 was one of our favorite places to play, and we always had a good time there. Thanks to Christine, Mike, and the staff at 454, and best of luck in whatever you guys end up doing next.

If you open another club, be sure and contact us. We'll be glad to play for you guys any time.

Since we've got a pretty light month in March (O'Reilly's is the only show booked at this point), Donny will be heading out to Allentown, PA on Friday, March 21 to appear with his good friends The Lou Franco Project at Mezza Luna Sports Pub.

If you're out there in Pennsylvania, come on out and catch this show. Lou's band is real good and it should be a fun night.

This is the first weekend in five weeks that we don't have any gigs booked. So what better to do than go and check out some of our friends?

So, tonight TD and I are going to TailGators in Patchogue to see our friend Nancy's band, Hadicus Road. If you've been out to see any of our shows lately, Nancy is the girl who gets up and does such a great job with the Janis Joplin material.

Well, we get to go and check out a band instead of being the band that's getting checked out. If you're in Patchogue, you should stop by.

We got a MySpace friend request this morning from Mia Hansson, who is in the Swedish all-female band Nurse Diesel, and naturally she gets an add from us.

We've known about the Swedish ND for a while, but never thought to link to them. Well, that's remedied now, and we're sorry it took so long.

Check out Mia's space as well as the Nurse Diesel site - I'm sure if you're given the choice between looking at 3 crusty old dudes from New York or a bunch of beautiful Swedish women who rock, I know which way you're gonna go.

I just got a phone call that our friend and former band mate Bobby Wassmuth is in hospital.

We'd like to wish Bobby a full and speedy recovery. Even though we haven't seen him in a long time, he'll always be a Diesel and we hope he's feeling better soon.

As many of you know, I am the webmaster for Twisted Sister. It's a great gig - I've been doing their site since 2000, and it's far and away the coolest site I've ever built for a client.

Anyway. The band has released a live DVD from their 'Twisted Christmas' tour from last year, and they've also made a new video for their version of 'Silver Bells.'

You can check it out here. Nobodoy can tell me that TS' sense of humor has gotten any less warped over the years.

Enjoy!