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EPISODE 288: ALL ACCESS LIVE WELCOMES NAPOLEON DYNAMITE’S EFREN RAMIREZ

Efren Ramirez has been working as a professional actor for many years. Initially, his career consisted of guest star appearances on television, as he appeared in diverse roles on “E.R.”, “AMERICAN DAD”, “JUDGING AMY”, “THE DISTRICT”, “MAD TV”, and “SCRUBS.”

However, it was his memorable portrayal of “PEDRO” in the feature film “NAPOLEON DYNAMITE” that dramatically launched what has become a hugely prolific acting career with an unusually diverse series of performances in Film, Television, Drama, Comedy…every imaginable medium and genre.

In the years since that film was released, Efren Ramirez has appeared in scores of films and television shows, including leading roles in the HBO film “WALKOUT”; with Edward James Olmos, “EMPLOYEE OF THE MONTH”; opposite Dane Cook and Dax Shepard, “CRANK” and CRANK HIGH VOLTAGE; opposite Jason Statham, (playing his own twin brother in the sequel.) He also appeared in “GAMER” with Gerard Butler, “WHEN IN ROME” with Kristen Bell, “CROSSING THE HEART” opposite Kris Kristofferson, “HOUSE OF MY FATHER” opposite Will Ferrell, and HBO’s EASTBOUND AND DOWN” with Danny McBride.

Most recently, you can expect to see him in FOX’s Television hit “THE GRINDER” with Rob Lowe and the animated series “BORDERTOWN” with Hank Azaria and Alex Bernstein, HULU’s “DEADBEAT” with Tyler Labine, and the film “MIDDLESCHOOL: THE WORST YEARS OF MY LIFE” based on the James Patterson best seller.

Efren Ramirez currently resides in Los Angeles and New York. When he isn’t filming, he is spinning records as a guest D.J. in clubs all across the country. He has published his first book DIRECT YOUR OWN LIFE. Efren recently returned from a USO TOUR visiting our troops in Bahrain, UAE, Dubai, and Africa. He frequently speaks to students at high schools and universities and is very involved with charitable organizations.

Brought in part by Five Star Guitars

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EPISODE 279: ALL ACCESS LIVE with JEFF PILSON

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1ofMshggCZA

Jeff Pilson is an amazing multi-instrumentalist, producer, recording & touring artist, and vocalist, currently the bassist for FOREIGNER. He joined the band in 2004. He produced Foreigner’s 2006 Live CD, “Extended Versions,” recorded November 26, 2005 at Texas Station, as well as tracks off of their “No End in Sight” CD in 2008. In 2009 FOREIGNER released “Can’t Slow Down” featuring Jeff on Bass and backing vocals. Jeff was also featured on the 2011 FOREIGNER release, “Acoustique” which presented their most famous songs along with some newer tracks, stripped-down. FOREIGNER released a LIVE album in 2016, “In Concert: Unplugged” with Jeff as the musical director for the project. Later that year the band dropped a new EP featuring “The Flame Still Burns” for Record Store Day’s Black Friday event.

Jeff was a member of melodic metal bands Dokken, Dio and MSG. Additionally, Jeff played in the band Wild Horses which also featured drummer James Kottak (Scorpions, Kingdom Come), guitarist Rick Steier (Kingdom Come, Warrant), and singer John Levesque.

Jeff also formed his own progressive metal group called War and Peace in 1989, handling all of the vocals, along with his instrumental work. Jeff released four W&P albums: 1993’s “Time Capsule”… 2001’s “Light at the End of the Tunnel”… 2004’s “The Walls Have Eyes”… as well as the 2013 reissue of “The Flesh & Blood Sessions” featuring tracks that pre-dated Time capsule along with a new bonus track, “Heaven Knows.”

Jeff Pilson is also an actor, having appeared in the movie Rock Star, 2001. Pilson played bassist Jorgen, of the fictional band Steel Dragon. The film also featured performances by musicians such as Zakk Wylde, Jason Bonham, Myles Kennedy, Brian Vander Ark, Blas Elias and Nick Catanese. He also played in the film’s soundtrack and served as Musical Director for the film.

Pilson produced the first two CDs of San Diego metal band Benedictum as well as the first release from Adler, featuring original Guns & Roses drummer, Steven Adler.

Jeff also worked with his ex-Dokken band mate, guitarist George Lynch (and drummer Michael Frowein) in a project called Lynch/Pilson, which in 2003 released the critically acclaimed “Wicked Underground” in 2003 where Pilson also handled lead vocal duties. This recording was later remastered and re-packaged in 2020 with a special bonus track, “Top of the World.”

Jeff & George have since collaborated on several projects & bands, including the 2012 release T&N “Slave to the Empire” which also featured Dokken drummer, Mick Brown and drummer Brian Tichy. Vocals on all new tracks were handled by Jeff, and a few re-worked Dokken classics were handled by guest vocalists.

Jeff was invited to play bass on Lynch Mob’s 2015 release, “Rebel” and later would team up again with George & Mick along with former Lynch Mob vocalist Robert Mason to record & release “THE END machine” in 2019, followed up by “Phase 2” in 2021. Jeff & George would like to record new music with this group!

And finally, Jeff balances TEM with another project group called Black Swan that features Jeff on bass with REB Beach on lead guitar, Matt Starr on drums and powerhouse vocalist Robin McAuley on the mic. They released “Shake the World” in 2020 and came back in 2022 with “Generation Mind.”

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GREAT WHITE’S JACK RUSSELL JOINS ALL ACCESS LIVE

California native Jack Russell is a rock vocalist and songwriter, and a founding member of early-’80s hard rock radio staples Great White. Citing influences like Robert Plant and Steven Tyler, Russell spent his formative years fronting high-school bands. In 1977 he co-founded the band Danté Fox alongside guitarist Mark Kendall. In 1981 the band changed its name to Great White, and in 1984 the group issued its eponymous debut album via EMI. Great White hit it big in 1987 with their third LP, Once Bitten…, which featured the hit single “Rock Me,” and again in 1989 with …Twice Shy, which included their chart-topping cover of Ian Hunter’s “Once Bitten Twice Shy.” Russell left the group in 1996 to pursue a solo career, and released Shelter Me in 1999 via MVP Records. That same year saw Russell rejoin the band, but by 2001 Great White had called it quits, holding a farewell show on New Year’s Eve at the Galaxy Theatre in Santa Ana, California.

The following year saw Russell begin touring under the name Jack Russell’s Great White. By 2005, the stress from lawsuits stemming from a tragic accident in a Rhode Island club, inner band turmoil, and Russell’s substance abuse problems had taken its toll, and Jack Russell’s Great White ceased operations. The original lineup of Great White re-formed for a tour and released their tenth studio album, Back to the Rhythm, in 2007. Another studio LP, Rising, followed in 2009, but it would be Russell’s last outing with the group. In 2011, after a period of recuperation following multiple back surgeries stemming from a fall in 2009, a newly sober Russell began operating once again under the Jack Russell’s Great White moniker. In 2017 the band released its debut studio album, He Saw It Comin’, via Frontiers Records.

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LIVING COLOUR’S DOUG WIMBISH ROCKS ALL ACCESS LIVE WITH KEVIN RANKIN

“I’m not just a Bass Player, I’m a Sound System”

As bassist for the legendary rap label Sugarhill Records backing Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five to the pioneering Living Colour, Doug Wimbish has lent his innovative and creative bass grooves and sounds to a roster of world-renowned musicians. Considered a pioneer in Hip-Hop bass playing and in the use of bass effects, alternate tunings and extended hand techniques, Doug’s mastery of the bass is unparalled. As one of the most versatile session and touring bassists in the industry, Doug moves readily from pop and mainstream rock to hip-hop, funk, metal, symphonic metal, reggae, R&B, electronic, world and experimental music.

Doug Wimbish is probably best known as the cutting edge lead bassist in the Grammy Award-winning hard rock band Living Colour, but looking beyond the obvious, one quickly sees that Doug’s influence and impact on the world’s musical culture is much more vast and significant than often written or realized.

Grandmaster Flash and The Furious Five’s “The Message”, listed by Rollingstone.com as the #1 Greatest Hip Hop Song of all time, featured Doug’s bass lines as do many other Sugarhill Records classics including “Apache”, “8th Wonder” and “White Lines”. Wimbish wrote the bass line on The Sequence’s “Funk You Up”.

To get an idea of the respect Doug has earned within the music industry, consider that in one week in 1991, Doug received personal phone calls from Living Colour, Bruce Springsteen and Seal, all asking him to work with them. Doug made the decision to work with Living Colour and joined the band, becoming its permanent bassist. He actively records and tours today with his band mates Vernon Reid, Corey Glover and Will Calhoun. The group’s latest album, “Shade”, was released in September of 2017.

In addition to his work with Living Colour, Doug’s highly regarded career spanning all musical genres has also included recording, producing and touring with many world renowned artists including The Rolling Stones, Mick Jagger, Jeff Beck, Joe Satriani, Herb Albert, Annie Lennox, Madonna, Carly Simon, Seal, Al Green, Billy Idol, George Clinton, Depeche Mode, Talib Kweli, Kanye West, James Brown, Mos Def, Tarja Turunen, Ronnie Wood, Freddie Jackson, Michael Bolton, Schiller, Cheb Khaled, Hari Haran and Peter Wolf, to name a few.
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From his early days as one of Hip-Hop’s earliest architects in the Original Sugarhill Records Rhythm Section, to his long-time membership in Living Colour, TackHead, Little Axe, Jungle Funk, HeadFake, and then on to more recent collaborations including DMD the Vibes with Daru Jones & Marcus Machado, Doug continues to prove himself as one of the world’s finest, versatile and most sought after bass guitarists.

Sponsored by Music Millennium, Rhythm Traders and Five Star Guitars

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THE ORIGIN OF HIP-HOP AND THE SUGARHILL GANG with MASTER GEE

“I said M-A-S, T-E-R, a G with a double E, I said I go by the unforgettable name of the man they call the Master Gee” – Rapper’s Delight.

Guy O’Brien is an American rapper known by the stage name Master Gee, founding member of the hip-hop group The Sugarhill Gang.

Master Gee and I recently spent some incredible time sharing life’s journey, our love and appreciation for the ability to continue to do what we were put on this planet to do. I can guarantee anyone spending time to join us on this live hang is gonna come away with a newfound appreciation for The Sugarhill Gang, this man’s passion for life and spreading positivity. You’ll no doubt walk away from this conversation as inspired as I have from Master Gee in the past.

Brought to you by Rhythm Traders, Five Star Guitars and Music Millennium

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COREY GLOVER of LIVING COLOUR joins ALL ACCESS LIVE from SECRETS RESORT, CANCUN MEXICO

From The Sands festival in Cancun, Mexico, Corey sat down with me to talk about each step of his journey from a fledgling artist in NYC to acting in the Oscar-winning film by Oliver Stone “Platoon”. Join part one of our spirited hang as we chill poolside, with iconic bands playing in the background near the beach – pardon the background noise!
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Best known as the lead singer of Living Colour, the multi-talented Corey Glover has also issued albums as a solo artist and acted in movies/television. Born on November 6, 1964, in Brooklyn, NY, Glover met up with guitarist Vernon Reid (who was already a respected and in-demand sessionman) in the early ’80s, when Reid was impressed with Glover’s soulful rendition of “Happy Birthday” at a mutual friend’s party. The duo went on to form Living Colour (along with drummer Will Calhoun and bassist Muzz Skillings), but just as the group was creating a buzz in the N.Y.C. underground with their hard-rocking sound and socially aware lyrics, Glover had to briefly leave the group when he landed a part in Oliver Stone’s classic Vietnam movie, Platoon. Shortly after he returned, Living Colour was signed to Epic (thanks in part to a Mick Jagger-produced demo tape), and scored a big hit straight away with their debut recording, 1989’s Vivid, and smash single/video “Cult of Personality.”

Living Colour continued issuing challenging albums, including 1990’s Time’s Up and 1993’s Stain, but decided to break up in 1995 (Skillings had left the group a few years prior, replaced by session ace Doug Wimbish). Glover attempted to launch a career as a solo artist, issuing the overlooked Hymns in 1998, also finding time to appear as a VJ on VH1 and acting in the 1996 movie Loose Women. Glover reunited with his Living Colour chums in 2001.

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ALL ACCESS LIVE with VINNY APPICE (DIO, BLACK SABBATH, JOHN LENNON)

Vinny’s unique, powerful drumming is marked not by his performances with a single group, but by his flawless musical contributions to an extensive list of rock and roll icons like Black Sabbath, Ronnie James Dio, Heaven & Hell, Rick Derringer, John Lennon and more!

A consummate performer and drummer, Vinny also is a brilliant clinician, performing clinics and master classes all across the globe as well as making appearances in films and television.

He has recorded and co-written songs on over 25 albums and CDs including many multi-platinum records. Touring the world for over 2 decades resulted in selling millions of records!

Vinny’s drumming can also be heard on numerous movie soundtracks including Wayne’s World 2, Heavy Metal, Iron Eagle and Bedazzled. Vinny, the author of drum instruction book “Rock Steady” and DVD “Hard Rock Drumming Techniques” has performed incredible powerhouse drum clinics around the globe also. Numerous books have been written about Black Sabbath and Dio with the authors always mentioning Vinny’s unique powerful drumming style!

“I would like to mention some of the boys that got my drumming blood flowing……John Bonham, Buddy Rich, Billy Cobham, Mitch Mitchell……Thanks!”

Sponsored by Five Star Guitars and Rhythm Traders

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ALL ACCESS LIVE with HEATHER THOMAS

Heather Anne Thomas is an American actress, activist, and author who grew famous for her role as Jody Banks in the adventure series ‘The Fall Guy’. Her TV stint began at a young age when she was chosen as one of the hosts for the NBC series ‘Talking with a Giant’. She then went on to earn a degree in Film and Theatre from ULCA before making guest appearances in TV series, such as ‘California Fever’, ‘Co-Ed Fever’ and ‘The Misadventures of Sheriff Lobo’.

Her breakthrough arrived in 1981 when she was roped in to play a lead role in ‘The Fall Guy’. The show, which ran for five seasons, became quite popular in many states and made Thomas a household name. Since then, she has been part of many TV series and movies. Her most notable movie role was in the 1987 made-for-tv ‘Ford: The Man and the Machine’, which earned her a Gemini Award nomination.

As the years passed, Thomas started focusing more on her personal life and decided to stop acting in 1998. She is currently an activist for various causes, in addition to being a scriptwriter and published author.

Sponsored by Five Star Guitars and Rhythm Traders

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ALL ACCESS LIVE with CUTTING CREW

New music, new stories and new outlook by the remarkable band you fell in love with in the 80s. Cutting Crew’s Nick Van Eede, Gareth Moulton and Josh Thompson return to All Access Live to share some light with you.

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ALL ACCESS LIVE with IVAN DOROSCHUK (MEN WITHOUT HATS)

Men Without Hats formed in 1977 amid the Montreal punk scene. They became pioneers of electro-pop in Canada after adopting a New Wave sound that made extensive use of keyboard and drum synthesizers. Their sound is characterized by infectiously simple melodies, socially and politically idealistic lyrics, and the distinctive baritone voice of lead singer, principle songwriter and chief member Ivan Doroschuk.
The band enjoyed phenomenal success in the 1980s with the worldwide hits “Safety Dance” and “Pop Goes the World.” Both songs were inducted into the Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame in September 2020.

Ivan’s in the studio recording new material, and will take some time to join us for an update on Men Without Hats!

We opened Ivan’s fortune at the end of today’s episode:

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