Rock Legend JOHN CORABI Shares New Single "When I Was Young" + Visualizer

0:04 Hey, you have done to censure. Wow for you young, looking. Back at the d's gone back, I m as and wonder why all the things I could have done me. Now was young. This is the pipe man here on me Adventures Pipe NW four C Y Radio, And oh my god, I came in the studio today and there's no heat and we're in South Florida. And who knew I'd ever have to worry about heat in my studio in South Florida.

0:47 But that's why I'm all bundled up here on this interview. And the person we have with us. I mean, he's in Tennessee, so they had it a lot worse than us, I'm sure. So let's welcome to the show. John Carabbie, how are you. I'm good, buddy. Actually we're both. We both got the email dress appropriately. So right. I'm like I was thinking myself too when I got in here. I'm like, oh, I'm getting look pretty stupid, all bundled up. Well, you know what, It's fine, I finally have power after I don't know Nashville unfortunately. I was just telling you we had a snowstorm. Then it stopped snowing, it rained, but the temperature dropped like twenty degrees overnight. So last Friday, whenever it snowed, it was either Friday or Saturday. Power went out about five o'clock in the morning because all the trees in Nashville, they were covered in ice and the weight, wow, they were just falling and pulling the power lines down and electric poles, and and then the other oddity that I didn't realize could happen as I was also just saying, I had three huge trees in my backyard, and I was sitting outside having.

2:14 A cup of coffee, and literally like three trees. In my backyard just exploded and fell into my yard, and I was like, what the hell? You know it was? It was weird, but they were eventually, you know, the news was saying on our phones, because that's all we had for a few days, right, was the SAP was freezing and expanding and just blowing the trees out. It was literally sitting in my neighborhood, you could just hear them popping, like it was like gunshots just going off around the neighborhood. So we finally, I think a majority of Nashvillians have power now.

3:00 But it took them almost ten days and it was cold. My neighbor or a friend of mine just had their power going on last night and she took a photo of her thermostat in her house and it was thirty three degrees in her house. Oh man, Yeah, so it's been it's been interesting, to say the least. Well, you know, it's funny too, because in line with your new single, when I was young, when I was young in the Northeast, it would have been no big deal. And now it's like, screw this, I don't want this crap anymore.

3:45 Well, you know, it's funny you start. I love I do love the Southern hospitality. For the most part, I do love there's something to be said about Southern hospitality, the friendly, usual, friendly nature of people. But when it snows, you know, I don't, I don't. I you know, you're in southern Florida, so I imagine it doesn't snow there often. But when it snows here in Nashville, they are not prepared. It's like you might as well just have a zombie apocalypse because it's it's about the same, you know whatever.

4:27 Well, let me tell you what they did here for safety reasons. A bunch of the venues near our studio that had live music this weekend canceled the gigs because of cold weather like that that would never happen, and it was a trip on Saturday. During the day it was I was like, I kept getting these nullifications on my phone. I'm like, what are they talking about. It's nice outside, like it was like in the seventies, and then all of a sudden, these like forty five mile per hour winds kicked up when the sun went down and we went down to like my phone said, thirty four feels like twelve.

5:09 Yeah, that's for Florida, right, That's. Like, that's like living in Greenland. So maybe that's what it is. Because you know, the guy that wants Greenland, he's right by our studios. So maybe he's just try to get people comfortable with the idea. Who knows. I you know what we're let's one subject I wish to avoid altogether. Oh yeah, politics. I'm just laughing at you made the Greenland comment. Where I am right now, But I'm all about the music because I tell you what, I have this idea that if we had like one major music festival that everybody had to go to throughout the whole world, we would end all the bullshit that's going on around the world, and we could all unite because it's the best therapy and the best uniter And you got some new music that's really badass.

6:03 Thank you. So, just out of curiosity, were you able to hear the whole record or just the tracts that are. Out right now? I just got part I didn't get the whole thing yet, but I liked the parts that I heard. Okay. Yeah, they normally send out some sort of a link where you can't really download it, but you can click on it anytime and just. Listen to it. And everybody that's gotten the link and heard the whole record is it? You know? Honestly, the the response and the feedback that I'm getting has been incredibly overwhelmingly positive. So I'm very happy about that.

6:47 And you know, life is awesome in John Ker Robbieville. So how you know, how does it feel to like be doing this for all these years and then put something out like this that it's just you being totally you, and how exactly how you want it to be? You know what? I got to be honest, if you like I see it's it's it's funny how a lot of these. YouTube videos will just grab a comment for a thumbnail, you know. And I remember I was doing a conversation maybe about a year ago, and and I made a comment like, yeah, sometimes I wonder why my bank account doesn't look like you know, Nikky six is or Steven Tyler.

7:41 So they ran with that made me look like a complete idiot. But it's funny, man, I've I've kind of I had, I had an odd path in my musical career, and I've had some ups and I've had some downs, and and you know, it's just made me reevaluate some of the things or the things that are important, and so I tend to look at the little things, you know, like I don't know, health, the fact that we wake up at our age, the fact that we even woke up and were able to start a new day. You know, no pun intended is a blessing.

8:26 And if you would have asked sixteen year old John Krabbie if he'd still be doing this at sixty six or sixty seven, I probably would have said no. So I, you know, honestly, again, I just did my you know, this is my nineteenth record of new material. I still get to travel I'm getting ready to go on tour with the guys, start in Europe and the UK. And you know, life is good, man. I'm again, I'm still able to make music and do interviews. People still have some interest in talking to me as we're doing right now.

9:09 So I just feel blessed, you know what I mean, I don't, you know, long. Story short, I just feel every day very blessed that I'm able to do something I enjoyed doing and I still make, you know, a reasonably good living at it. So life is awesome. It's also awesome too because as somebody myself who was my dad moved me from New Jersey to in nineteen eighty to LA where I hung out on the Sunset Strip and all over there during my teenage years. And the fact that we even made it to this level of life and got out of.

9:51 That alive, that's a blessing in and of itself. Yeah, I again, without being political, I find it. You rists that a lot of my friends that I knew back in the day on the Sunset Strip, you know, for whatever, to each his own, but you know, some of them were like, you know, having a hissy fit about the masks and. The COVID shots and all this other kind of stuff, and I just laughed. I'm like, bro, the last time I saw you, you were snorting cocaine off a toilet seat at the Rainbow. Seriously, this is this is this is what's driving you crazy right now.

10:32 No doubt, like some of this stuff that went on back then, Oh my god, that that you would even worry about anything now blows my mind. Yeah, dude, it's like I remember, you know, I don't know how old you are, but again, I'm going to be sixty seven in April, and it's like, dude, I drank water out of spickett lead spicketts in the sixties, you know, straight out of the thing, you know, fire hydrants. We would turn fire Hide song in the summer, you know, painted in lead paint, and you know. And I'm like, okay, whatever, you know, eating a little sugar isn't gonna kill. Me, right, Yeah, I'm fifty nine.

11:13 So yeah, like you weren't even allowed to come home if you if you were thirsty and you knocked on the door and said I'm thirsty, your parents told you to go drink out of the spickett, Like yeah. Yeah, it was like you know what was kool aid made of Back then? It was like you know, magic marker juice, right, know what I mean, it was like whatever. But you know, like like things have changed a bit, you know. So that's why I'm just like I just laugh at you know, actually both sides of the fence, you know, things that people get upset about, and I just laugh and I, oh, you know what, this is me just driving in my lane. Man, I'm just keeping my mouth shut, doing my thing. And you know, to each.

12:01 His own exactly. Man. My viewpoint is like if you really don't focus on certain things, they don't really affect your life in that grade of a way, if at all, you know, So like, just enjoy and enjoy and be you. That's my thing. And that's why I think it's great for people like you to be able to still keep creating music. Like and I'm in awe of it, to be honest, because I'm sitting here thinking, like, after all these years in the business, how do you still keep up coming up with new material? You know, it's obviously you don't want to repeat yourself.

12:42 Right now, so but you know what, honestly, like. You know, there's a few songs on this record. You know, I've had people ask me, like, you know, like what made you write the lyrics to New Day or what's the you know when I was young, and you know, if you're just kind of look around you and you know, and again we're inundated twenty four to seven news cycles of you know, goofy stuff every day. There's plenty of sh I t to write about, you know what I mean. You know, so I just I just.

13:24 Look at life, put pen to paper, you know, try and come up with a melody that I haven't used before in the past. And and you know, but if you just look around you, there's plenty. Of stuff to write about. Oh yeah, you know, trust me. So you know, maybe next year I'll write a song called Exploding Trees. I don't right, you know, that would actually be a pretty cool song. I can see that as a cool song. But it is, you know, it is amazing. There is always things to write about, isn't there. You know, Like I think there's a lot of things to write about in the eighties that you know, are similar things you could write about today.

14:07 Yeah. You know, honestly, doing this record the only thing, the only plan that I had doing this record when I sat down with Marty Marty Frederickson, for those who don't know, very good friend of mine. He's playing guitar with me and in the band. But he's an incredible producer, songwriter, and I've had the pleasure of doing several records with Marty. And but he's like, so, what do you want to do crab you know? And I said, you know, when I was growing up, and I think this is something you could probably relate to.

14:50 We just listened to music, and it wasn't. Unusual for a kid like me to go see you know, Sabbath or Zeppelin on a Monday, and then go see Cat Stevens or Jim Crotchey the next day, and then go see a prog rock band like Yes or jeth Rotol. You know what I mean. We just went We just loved music. I loved My mom had a massive record collection, so in my house we were listening to everything from. Uh, you know, Johnny. Cash, Frank Sinatra, Trinny Lopez to led Zeppelin, Sabbath, Kiss whatever.

15:40 So my biggest thing doing this record. Didn't know what I was going to write about. All I told Marty is I want to go back. To the day when the bands. And again you'll understand this, but the bands that I grew up listening to did have rules. Yeah they didn't. They were allowed to be creative, regardless of what it meant. There was no boxes nowadays. You know, you work in radio, you work. In in in the music industry at all. As soon as you come up with a song or an album, everybody, the suits, i'll call them, the people in charge, immediately try to figure out, Okay, what box does what box does.

16:28 This record go in? It? Is it heavy rock? Is it classic rock? Is it you know, Americana country, blah blahahah. And they're just trying to put things in a box. And I don't. I didn't want that. And you know, even somebody heard the record and they were like, oh, you're living in Nashville now, so I can kind of hear like a in some of the songs, a bit of a country reinfluence, and I go, not really, it's got nothing to do with Nashville at all. And then I kind of proceeded to Tom. I said, listen, man, like to me, music started with really American music started.

17:19 With the blues. Yeah, that was the root. And then all these little offshoots started coming off, whether it be country or rockabilly or or you know, rock whatever, it all came off of that that tree trunk, you know what I mean? And I said, if you go back and. Look at the early Beatles, the Beatles covered Bucko and Zach naturally, Yes, that's a buckowing song. And then if you listen to bands like the Rolling Stones, you have songs like honky Tonk woman, I'm just waiting on a friend, dead Flowers. They in this day and age, they could be considered country socks.

18:01 Yeah. Yeah. And then even a band like led Zeppelin on you know I think it was was it in through the Outdoor They wrote a song called hot Dog, which is kind of a rockabilly. It's it is, it's kind of Americana type. Yes, so, but that's what I loved about all those early early bands. I love bands like ac DC and Priest and Iron Maiden that do what they do and they do it well. But I was more inclined to listen to the bands. When you went track the track, you had no idea what was coming. Next, do you know what I mean? Oh totally, And. I just wanted to get back to that the Credence, Clearwater Revivals, the Bob Seekers, and you know some of these other bands that I just mentioned, Zeppelin, Beatles, Stones, you know, so I just want that was my only rule.

18:54 Doing this record. No boxes were just gonna write and if we like it, it's going on the record. I love that because think about it, the Beatles and Zeppelin both, I mean almost every album was a different type of genre if you labeled it by today's standards. Yes, and that was the brilliance, you know. And I'm a bit of a even though I've been doing this for one hundred and seventy years, I love like music trivia. I'm a bit of a nerd. My wife laughs all the time because I'll tell her. She's a bit younger than me, so I'll sit there and tell her stories about you know.

19:42 Ah, the Beatles sold out Shea stadium in. Six weeks, but Grand Funk Railroad did it in seventy two hours. And you know all this weird stuff. And you know the fact that Zeppelin locked themselves away on. Zeppelin three and did. What a lot of people considered was their acoustic record, uh, you know, and they got slack for it. They got a lot of shit for that, you know what I mean. So I just loved the brazenness and the creativity of some of those old bands, you know. And then it was funny. I just it was funny. After Zeppelin three, they locked themselves in the studio, they said all right, you know, and they get together and they did what is considered their masterpiece.

20:40 Zeppelin four. Right, you know. But then they said, well, you know what, We're not going to put our name on the record. There's no nothing on the cover or the back that even remotely says led Zeppelin. They're like, nope, the label was it's like, you. Can't do that. I remember that too, Yeah, you. Cannot do that. And guess what, folks, that record went on to sell twenty six million copies. Well and look at it like it happened when a lot of bands look at Metallica's Black album. Yeah, you know, and it's it's just I love bands that are not afraid to go against the grain, you know, and and just do what's in their heart, you know, do what's in.

21:31 Their head, whatever sounds they're hearing. You know. I know a lot of people give Metallica a grief over the same Anger album, but. I actually liked the album. And I was at their first show ever in LA and I like the album. Yeah, It's like they did what they wanted to do. And yet and my thing was the only thing that I wanted to do on this record was just write some really great Class six sixty seventy sound in record, you know, songs. And I did not want to be pigeonholed and put into any. Box, as you shouldn't be.

22:13 Like you were bringing up the suits before, I believe the suits have their place, but their place should not be in the creativity. Leave the creativity to the artists and the business end to the suits. That's my viewpoint, because if you're the artist, you know what creativity is flowing out. It's it's not a formula. It's just something that comes from inside. Yeah, and it's you know, everybody's got their thing, you know. And and I agree with you. I agree like a band should formulate their sound, put their album together, and then turn it in and it's up to the manager and the record label to sell it, you know. And but like you said, the creative part has to lie with the band. I mean, you know, I've never been a guy to I'm just not one to just go through the motions of you know and do something for the buck.

23:18 I just can't do it. So to me, you know, I've had you know, all throughout my. Whole career, people were like, well, you know this record, you know what, what were you guys thinking when you did this record? Or you know, were you guys, you know, were you guys trying to write you know that, you know whatever. This song for radio or da da dada. And I'm like, no, I've never been that guy. Especially in the screen that very first band that I had, I learned a very valuable lesson. We were up to be on him with the Man in the Moon video and we got bumped.

24:07 I think it was two weeks or three weeks in a row. We were scheduled to have our video release on you know, MTV was going to put it out, and then all of a sudden, I don't know if you remember this or not, but Bart Simmons they did a thing called the Bart Man. I think I remember that. Yeah, it was a. Video and they released it and it it bumped us two weeks in a row. So at that point I went, you know, what all I can do is the best I can do in the studio and writing the songs and after that, I have no power over that. If that's what you know, the you know, the suits want to put on, then you know have at it.

24:52 So it is what it is. Well, my hat's off to you for saying true to being an artist, especially from those times, because there's so many that didn't and then you know later they wanted to go back to it. But once you stray, it's kind of hard to go back to being who you are and people wanting it. Yeah, and that's the thing, like again, you write songs to me, if if if I wrote songs that I thought would work with other people and not stay true to myself first, then I'm I'm gonna be sitting on stage playing songs that I'm I'm I'm miserable about exactly you know what I mean, And it's like I'm just doing it for.

25:39 The cash and people can tell I can tell. Yes, the audience can see that. So my thing is, you know, if if it if, if the song is kicking me in the ass, I'm good, put it on the record and and then let the chips fall where they may. So you know what, those so far, so good, We released two singles from this thing, and the response has been great. I'm getting, like I said, great, great reviews, positive feedback from the fans. That's all you can ask for.

26:20 And what I heard from it, too is going back to what you were talking about, even because I say it a lot these days, is like going back to that those times of actual musicianship, you know, instead of just having a formula. It's it's just it's real music. It's real, yeah, And that's I mean for me to each his own again, like I've been asked, especially with you know, because I was in the band for a minute. You know once Mick and Motley were doing their thing back and forth, and there was all this talk about you know, uh, lip syncing and tapes and you know, all these people ask me, you know, how I feel about it, and I'm like, it's irrelevant how I feel.

27:09 It doesn't matter, you know. And I know there's there's plenty of bands I I can't remember that. Oh god, they were huge there for a minute. No, no, well, I mean even Millie Vanilli, like they were massive and then they're like, oh, the tape skipped and they were lip syncing, and you know, but you know bands like you know, def Leppard. I think they're great, one of my wife's favorite bands. You know, we go see them anytime they're in Nashville. We go see them, and it's obvious that there's some enhancements going on. Joe's singing, the band's playing, but there's some backing tracks going on.

27:56 You know. Even in Motley when I was in. The band, we use some backing tracks to enhance the backing vocals. And like we had a song called Misunderstood, which had a sixty three piece orchestra, but Mick was playing, I was playing, Tommy was playing, Nicky was playing, and we just used the orchestra part. You know. So bands have been doing this forever and if that's what they choose to do, awesome, great, have at it. I'm not going to judge somebody for trying to make their show the best they can, you know, now, do I do it? No? Like I like personally, I like the Old.

28:43 Stones Aerosmith approach. You know, just a wall of amps. Just go out there. If you have five part harmonies, if you have five part harmonies, you know on the studio album, then okay. So Mick and Keith are just going to cover it now, you know what I mean. They find the best too, and that's what they say. I think it's better that way anyway, like live music should like some of my favorite experiences of live music were screw ups, because then you knew it was real. Like I have talked about this before on my show.

29:23 You probably remember, like I was there at the s Festival in nineteen eighty three when David Lee Roth forgot the words to Ain't talking about Love and he. Just said it to the crowd. He said, I f and forgot the words, and the whole place cheered. Three hundred thousand people cheered, and it was I was cheered too. To this day, I think it's one of the greatest moments. Yeah, but you know, for me, I was just more like again if Airsmith. I've seen Aersmith like God fifty times, and it was more about the power, the rawness. You know, everything in the studio was polished, but live it was just in your face, kick your ass and just go.

30:09 And that's that's how I, you know, approach. There's nights where I get on stage and I go, oh, I don't know, I'm not not feeling it. Don't know if I'm gonna be able to hit that note. So guess what. I changed the melody a little bit so I just get you know, so it's more about the rawness, the live thing, just you know whatever. But again, yeah, to each his own, man, I'm not I'm not here to judge somebody for you know, what they're doing, how they're doing it whatever. The true artists, you know, like, does what works for them, you know, and it doesn't matter what anybody else thinks.

30:52 Yeah, I'm sure you know somebody saw a starry night by Van Go and went. A lot of blue Buddy to a lot of blue right. Back it down or not, you know what I mean. But it's like, you know, it is, it is what it is, man. Whatever. So how do people go and check out the new album? How to connect with you on socials? Check out tour dates, all that good stuff. Well, there's John Karabbi dot com. There's John Krabbie Official Instagram, John Krabbi Official Facebook. The new songs are all over YouTube, They're on Spotify. Iheartread all the streaming sites. So if you know how to spell my name, you can find it.

31:44 Just please ignore the FBI most wanted stuff. I know, some things have to stay in the eighties. Yes, all I know, as I can honestly say I was not on Epstein Island. Well there you go. And I can honestly say that I love the fact that whatever happened at the Sunset Strip, there's no record of it. That we know of, that we know of, that we know of. It's just talking about this the other day about like nowadays, everybody takes their phone and records when they go to a show, and I'm thinking, man, you didn't even think about that. You just went to a show and enjoyed, and you didn't even care about having pictures or anything like that.

32:32 Nah, not at all, you know what I mean. And even now, like I don't you know, I have a bunch of fans ask me all the time like hey, dude, are you cool with us like filming your show with your my our phones or cameras or I'm like, yeah, knock yourself out, you know, I mean the amount of money you guys are paying. For the freaking tickets, I know, right, yeah. And it's like, you know, is everything always gonna sound stellar? No, but this is a face that doesn't care. Like there it is, there's not gonna be there's some videos that are gonna be distorted. Sounds like I'm singing a little out of tune. But I hope that the.

33:15 People that were there will stand up in my defense and go, nah, it's just distorted. He wasn't singing out of tune. It's all great. Love it. I love it. I love the attitude you have. I love your new music, all of your music. But everybody definitely has to check it out. And uh, you know, there's lots of stories we could talk about of when I was young, for sure. Absolutely, yeah, I'm sure there is. And it's a new it's a new day for John Krabbe than. From your yes, from your mouth to God's ears, my friend. Yes, well, thank you for still giving us great music and artistry after all these years, and thanks for being on the adventures of pipe Man.

33:59 And you know what, thank you for the invite to talk anytime. Brother, anytime you need, you need any kind of talk or promotion of your music. I'm there for you, all. Right, buddy, Stay warm, and uh, when you're walking under trees, careful those falling iguanas. I know I was taking a walk last night, and uh, you know, it's like dodging bombs. So just not not to sound weird. Are they just like in like some sort of suspended animation. Or yeah, yeah, yeah, no, no. No there it's their protective thing too, uh, basically so that they don't get sick or nothing happens to them.

34:44 They get in this catatonic state. So it's kind of like the alligators with your nostrils out. Of the water in the freezing totally. Okay, yeah, that's that's that's pretty awesome, man. It's it's pretty wild. I seen it. I wish I could do that. I would put myself to sleep and wake up like, well no maybe never never mind, I might want. I might want to go backwards. Get that out. If my way to go backwards, If I could figure that one out, that would be stellar, right there, Yes, all. Right, my friend, will stay warm, buddy. YouTube, brother Kids, John Rockin And Radio, thank you for listening to the Adventures of Patemn on w for c u I Radio.