Edgar Winter Joins Voices at Lucent SuperBowl Concert

Edgar Winter

When the "Voices" head down to Biloxi, Mississippi for the Lucent Superbowl party, they'll be welcoming some special guests onstage. One of them will be the legendary, Edgar Winter. His "Frankenstein" and "Free Ride" were instant rock classics when they were released back in the 70s, and have remained mainstays on classic and album rock radio stations ever since.

     Edgar has also always had a large fan following. All one has to do is perform an internet search for "Edgar Winter," and it is obvious that his admirers have not forgotten him! I had the pleasure of talking to Edgar recently and found out that he's been working almost non-stop for the last couple of decades. In this feature, we'll attempt to "catch you up" with some of the recent highlights of his career.

     Within the past two years, Edgar had the distinction of being a guest of the former President Clinton at the White House in Y2K. He was part of the "America's Millenium Celebration"---a show that featured all kinds of musicians and celebrities ranging from Quincy Jones to Sophia Loren and Mohammed Ali. The concert (which was televised worldwide) showcased a variety of American music and Winter, along with John Fogerty (of Creedence Clearwater Revival) were spotlighted in the "rock and roll" portion of the event. Edgar chuckles when he described the party that was held in conjunction with the event at the White House. He admits that he went to the festivities expecting a more "formal" and "conservative" event but was surprised when it turned out to be "quite a memorable party."

     Edgar continues to make music that wows critics and fans alike. In 1999, he released, "Winter Blues," a CD that featured an all-star cast including the likes of: Leon Russell, Dr. John, Eddie Money, The White Trash Horns (the horn section of Edgar's first band White Trash), Rick Derringer and brother Johnny [Winter]. The CD has been called, "his best in the last decade," in several reviews.

Edgar Winter -- Winter Blues

     Edgar said, "I've never really done a pure blues album and this album was started specifically because I agreed to do a track for the Robert DeNiro movie, 'Wag The Dog.' I had to put together a real Delta blues sound and the song ended up being titled, 'Good Ole Shoe.' It's the first cut on the CD." Leon Russell joins Winter on it.

     There is a bit of a "story" behind "Good Old Shoe" that is worth revealing! While Mark Knopfler [Dire Straits] composed the score for the film, the producers needed a song called "Good Old Shoe" to highlight a character in the movie with the word, "Shu" in his name. Edgar says that they "put out a cattle call" for an appropriate song. They wanted something in the vein of an old Robert Johnson tune." He said that hundreds of musicians sent tapes. Winter wrote a song, sang it and did the slide guitar on the track in one day and the producers liked it so much they called him immediately saying, "We are not listening to anything else! We love it! This is IT!"

Edgar Winter -- Willie Nelson

     The rest of the album ["Winter Blues"], "shows a development of the blues . . . a sort of autobiography of the blues [as a genre]. Blues music is a great American contribution to art. It [the blues] didn't just 'happen;' it evolved over the years and I tried to show that on this CD." Edgar describes "Winter Blues" as having "everything f rom Robert Johnson to Jimmy Smith and gospel blues to Rolling Stones influences on it."

     Hearing his music behind the action of some major big screen blockbusters is nothing "new" to Edgar. His songs have appeared on the soundtracks to: "What's Love Got To Do With It," "Air America," "Son In Law," "Waynes World 2," "My Cousin Vinny," and most recently, "Duet," with Gwenyth Paltrow. The track from "Duet," is called "Keep On Rocking" and was also recently featured on the "Rockline" syndicated radio show. Edgar plans to put it on his next album.

     One of the things I have always admired about Edgar, is his ability to maintain a sense of humor about his music, image and Albinoism. He admits his "white trash" nickname and even his "drag" cover of "They Only Come Out At Night," are all part of his satirical sense of humor. He reflects that "David Bowie and all these other musicians of the glitter rock craze were wearing make-up [back in the early 70s] so I decided to have a little fun on that album cover."

G. Hamilton - E. Winter

     And...who can forget the commercial he did for Miller Brewing company with "suntan enthusiast" and actor, George Hamilton. There were jokes about the contrast in skin color...Edgar's being a milky white and Hamilton's being a deep bronze. Winter admitted that it was unusual for some of the younger-generation viewers recognized him [on the street] more for being "the guy in that cool beer commercial."

     Edgar also revealed an interesting anecdote about George Hamilton. He said that he first met George at his Hamilton Room "cigar, fine wine and congac place" in Beverly Hills. Winter recalls visiting it with his wife, Monique, and sitting down to the piano, playing, singing, sharing stories and talking into the night with George. Monique mentioned to Edgar that she thought that he and George has this amazing chemistry and that he should consider doing something with Hamilton at some point. Shortly after, the idea and call for the acting role in the beer commercial surfaced and Hamilton and Winter were working side-by-side in one of the most memorable "TV spots" in recent history. In fact, TV Guide's "Cheers and Jeers," picked it as one of the all-time best commercials of that year.

     Edgar's on-screen work has not been limited to just TV commercials. He recently appeared on the David Letterman show and is the proud owner of a "Late Night T-shirt." You might have also caught Edgar on "Mysterious Ways," where he played the role of an established guitar-playing rock star who was the mentor of a guitar-maker who dreamed of performing his own stuff.

     Working with other musicians is also something Edgar has always enjoyed. Edgar is truly one of the nicest gentleman in the business, so it is not hard to believe that he was able to get along famously with a guy rumored to be one of rock and roll's most "egotistical" types: David Lee Roth. Back when Roth did "Crazy From The Heat," Winter helped out on "Easy Street," "California Girls," and "Just A Gigilo." Edgar liked working with the former Van Halen frontman and they still occasionally keep in touch.

Edgar Winter -- Steve Lukather

     Winter has also toured periodically over the last couple of decades. One of his personal highlights was being on the road with Steve Lukather (Toto) in Japan and Europe. The trek was billed as "The Odd Couple," tour. He also played the Montreux Jazz fest last year with BB King and Johnny Lang.

     This April, you can catch Edgar at BB King's new nightclub in New York City on April 20th and 21st. Winter is also working on a couple CDs, including a jazz-blues album. He's planning to play festivals this summer as part of the "Re-boot Tour," with Grand Funk's Mark Farner and Uriah Heep. Naturally, he's looking forward to spending some time onstage and rocking with many of the Voices of Classic Rock this weekend, including friend Bobby Kimball among others.

     Remember---we are recording most of the show here at rockforever.com and hope to make some of the tracks available online soon! It's always a "party," when Edgar Winter hits the stage and I am sure that this weekend will be one "for the record books," in Biloxi!