By Jim Barber
Whether or not you wish to name them a supergroup comprised of prodigiously gifted, versatile and eminently profitable rock musicians, or a artistic ‘collective’ which includes a rotating band of musical gypsies who come and go, leaving of their wake some killer tracks and badass live performance experiences, The Useless Daisies are actually a bona fide music biz phenomenon.
Initially a undertaking designed to convey collectively some musical friends, led by band founder and Australian musician/songwriter/band chief David Lowy, the present lineup of Daisies options former Dio, Whitesnake and Burning Rain (his personal band) guitarist Doug Aldrich, who has been within the band since 2016, one other former Whitesnake member in bassist Michael Devin, former Motley Crue vocalist John Corabi, who’s on his second stint with the band since returning in 2023, together with Ozzy Osbourne/Black Sabbath drummer Tommy Clufetos.
Sizzling on the heels of their 2024 studio album Gentle ‘Em Up, the band lately launched Lookin’ For Bother, a novel however incendiary tackle 10 traditional Blues numbers, composed by the likes of Robert Johnson, Muddy Waters, and the three ‘Kings’ of the Blues – B.B., Freddie and Albert, amongst others. Their model of Johnson’s ‘Crossroads’ was the primary single, launched this previous spring, adopted be a gritty, grinding interpretation of John Lee Hooker’s traditional, ‘Increase Increase.’
Numerous the recording for Lookin’ For Bother came about at one of the well-known, iconic and inspirational studios in america – FAME (Florence Alabama Music Enterprises) Studios in Muscle Shoals, Alabama. It has performed host to iconic artists similar to Aretha Franklin, Wilson Pickett, Etta James, nation music legends similar to Mac Davis, Bobbie Gentry and The Gatlin Brothers, in addition to, surprisingly, Donny Osmond. Extra lately, Demi Lovato, The Drive By Truckers and Jason Isbell laid down tracks inside its partitions. FAME is a dwelling, working museum of Americana and well-liked music, and had the fellas in The Useless Daisies fired up like only a few occasions of their careers.
“As quickly as you stroll in, it’s like 1959 or 1969. It was actually cool, and every little thing is virtually untouched from that point. I like Duane Allman [Allman Brothers, Derek and the Dominos] and it was when he was there with Wilson Pickett recording in 1968 the place he actually received well-known. So, yeah, the partitions have been dripping with environment and historical past for positive. I didn’t see any ghosts, however I felt one thing. I felt, like, this stress of ‘look child, don’t screw this up, man. Lots of people right here paid their dues far more than you.’ I simply had this expectation of myself that wanted me to be higher than normal,” Aldrich mentioned.
Whereas not an ‘unintended’ album, Lookin’ For Bother was a delightfully unplanned, serendipitous concoction created by skilled, passionate musicians let unfastened with none expectations. Producer Marti Frederiksen took a ‘fly on the wall’ method as soon as he sensed there was some particular musical mojo taking place.
“We had gone down there to jot down songs with Marti, We didn’t have our common drummer with us on the time. Tommy [Clufetos] was busy with another stuff. So, we introduced in Sarah Tomek [Samanth Fish] and our plan was to enter a studio that was someplace totally different than we had been earlier than and simply document fundamental tracks [for Light ‘Em Up]. We weren’t worrying in regards to the sounds or something, a lot as principally getting arrange so we might write. And it went very well. Initially, the room was loopy. It was so inspiring to work on this studio. Every single day they do a tour the place they create in 20 to 60 folks and speak about all of the music that had gone down inside these partitions. That was tremendous inspiring and we have been simply having a blast. So, we received on a roll with the writing and we just about received forward of the sport. And I don’t know what it was like again then, , and being so near the precise ‘crossroads’ which is in Mississippi,” he mentioned, referencing the legend the place bluesman Robert Johnson bought his soul to the satan at ‘The Crossroads’ to be able to achieve musical success. Johnson didn’t discover that success in his lifetime, however has since been lionized and mythologized because the ‘founding father’ of blues music, influencing generations of artists from Muddy Waters and John Lee Hooker to Eric Clapton, Jimmy Web page and plenty of generations of rock and blues musicians to at the present time.
“We simply began listening to all these things that got here from this studio. And we’d exit into the studio and simply begin jamming and having enjoyable and one factor results in one other and Marti would say, ‘guys why don’t you attempt to do one thing with that music? Simply change it up slightly bit.’ So, for instance with ‘Crossroads,’ everybody’s heard the superb model that Cream did. It’s good. We wished to do one thing totally different, and I noticed there was a very nice guitar that the studio had there. I feel it was a Gibson ES-340 or 335 and I had it arrange within the tuning that I used to be writing in and it was sort of a slide tuning, so I grabbed my slide and began jamming, and Sarah kicked in that beat you hear and it was like wow, after which the opposite guys joined in,” Aldrich mentioned of the magical second.
“And Marti jumped in and mentioned, ‘let me document you guys.’ He might have simply sat there and allow us to jam, however he heard one thing. We went into the sales space after and thought it sounded fairly cool so we determined to complete it and got here up with a few new musical elements for it. As soon as we have been achieved with that, day by day, only for enjoyable, we might simply provide you with a special music to jam and fairly quickly we had about eight songs achieved. We knocked out a pair actually fast – ‘Candy Residence Chicago,’ and ‘Little Crimson Rooster.’ The entire thing whereas we have been jamming was to attempt to put our stamp on some previous classics that have been principally the idea of the rock world. We have been influenced by bands just like the Rolling Stones and all that stuff, and so they have been influenced by these American blues artists.”
Aldrich significantly liked re-imagining the B.B. King traditional, ‘The Thrill is Gone.’
“I wished to contribute and throw a pair songs into the method. So, I mentioned, ‘how about ‘The Thrill is Gone?’’ I like that music and everybody was down for it. However then it was, nicely what ought to we do with it? We determined to present it a special really feel. We took it to a special time signature like six/eight or three/4 which made it really feel extra like ‘Since I’ve Been Lovin’ You’ by Led Zeppelin, which additionally gave it extra of a sadder vibe virtually. We labored up an association after which got here up with slightly musical half on the finish that was simply one thing to tag on for enjoyable. We lower the monitor and the following morning Marti requested if I wished to hit it once more. And I listened again and mentioned, ‘dude, I used to be within the second proper there and I don’t know if I might ever play it like that once more.’ So, we left it because it was,” he mentioned.
“I had the little melody in my head, the ascending melody that B.B. did in his model and I sort of hit that a few occasions. However I did it another way as a result of the tempo was totally different. I simply had some nuances in it from that first take that I do know there’s no method I might ever play once more. While you’re taking part in, you’re attempting to be within the second. You gotta play from the center.”
Returning to FAME itself, Aldrich mentioned there are locations the place you possibly can see precise memorabilia from the legendary artists who recorded there, including extra gas to everybody’s artistic fireplace who walks via its doorways.
“The shops coming from there are unbelievable. It was a wild, wild time. It will need to have been one thing to be right here again then. Like I mentioned, you stroll in and it’s such as you’re again in 1960. The proprietor had an workplace that was up above and so they had a bunch of those superb, treasured gadgets in there. And this was the precise workplace the place folks would are available and say, ‘hey, I received this music.’ They usually’d play it for the man and he would possibly say sure, or he would possibly say no. Folks saved coming in, attempting to document right here. It was working right here with Wilson Pickett that gave Duane Allman his begin and in that workplace is a handwritten letter, I feel it was January 1969, written by him,” he mentioned, including that the tech used within the studio can also be fairly old skool, which took a little bit of getting used to.
“The monitoring system and the headphones that have been a part of that system that they had once we have been recording was a mono system. I imply, every little thing was mono again then, so the system they nonetheless had there was mono, and I used to be fairly enthusiastic about attempting it out. However after I received the headphone system, I spotted I couldn’t hear shit. However I knew I needed to dig deep and determine this out as a result of about one million different folks have already achieved it this manner and had nice outcomes. I made a decision to strip down the combination; I simply want some drums, slightly vocal and a little bit of my guitar, and that’s how I used to be capable of do it. At one level the studio proprietor instructed us that that they had ordered a stereo system years in the past however that they by no means put it in. He really requested me if I wished them to place it in and I mentioned, ‘no, I don’t wish to be the one to mess up the vibe. I’m simply going to roll with what you’ve received.’”
It was additionally a problem at occasions, particularly contemplating a lot of the recordings used on Lookin’ For Bother are impressed, one-take wonders, for vocalist Corabi, who Aldrich mentioned positively rose to the event.
“Like I mentioned, the entire expertise was fairly pure and natural, and John’s voice was an enormous spotlight of the document. His voice is ideal for that stuff, and he’s all the time received nice concepts. He would provide you with an incredible concept for the way we might twist one thing about and I’d go to work attempting to provide you with one thing to suit what he was searching for. I do know he had a blast, and it reveals on the ultimate document,” he mentioned.
On The Useless Daisies latest tour of Europe, the band performed two songs from Lookin’ For Bother.
“We did ‘Going Down,’ and ‘Increase Increase’ on the final tour, which we wrapped up simply a few weeks in the past. They went down nice,” mentioned Aldrich, who mentioned after a tour of the U.Ok. in August there aren’t any agency plans for any North American dates, a minimum of for the rest of 2025. Which doesn’t imply the fellas will not be busy.
“I’m unsure. David additionally has a household enterprise again in Australia, so he’s received to allocate a while for that. However I’m all the time writing, and John’s all the time writing and, really, he’s placing collectively some songs for one more solo factor and I’m serving to him with a few these. So, we’re doing that, however we do wish to get again out on the street in North America and up into Canada in fact, so hopefully we will try this sooner or later. I really assume it could be cool to do a blues evening for every present. Get a few different artists like us which can be into the blues rock factor and do one thing the place we simply follow stuff like what’s on the album. I feel that’d be nice.”
Aldrich can also be ensuring to deal with himself, after navigating his method via a critical and scary bout of most cancers, which started with a shock prognosis virtually precisely one yr in the past.
He ended up being hit with a type of most cancers which started because the virus often called HPV 16. A mysterious lump on his neck prompted him to ultimately search a medical evaluation after which remedy.
“It’s one thing that girls get scanned for once they go to the gynecologist however loads of guys by no means actually get scanned for it. So, by the point I noticed it on my neck it had gone from simply being most cancers on my tonsils, which is the place it began, to being in my lymph nodes. So, they needed to take away these lymph nodes that have been sizzling and so they additionally took out my tonsils. However I used to be very fortunate,” he mentioned, including that if there was any recommendation he might give, particularly to different males, is to suck it up and get examined repeatedly.
“Don’t assume every little thing goes to be okay. I feel it’s essential to even get simply normal check-ups the place they do blood work and stuff. It’s a ache within the ass, it’s not one thing you actually sit up for doing, particularly when you really feel fantastic. The explanation you go is since you by no means know what’s brewing, or what might brew so you really want to go to the physician and get issues checked out, particularly get your blood work achieved. And my different recommendation can be is don’t fear about it an excessive amount of till you may have one thing to fret about. Don’t fear about one thing you possibly can’t management. In my state of affairs, I didn’t know that it was going to turn out to be one thing critical. Once I first met with the physician, I used to be involved he was going to say, like that I had two weeks to dwell or two years or no matter. However he principally mentioned, ‘you lucked out.’ It is a sort of most cancers that may be handled when you catch it early and likewise it has much less likelihood of recurring. In order that half made me really feel good. I needed to do a full-on remedy and surgical procedure in order that half wasn’t so enjoyable. Wanting again, folks have been saying to me, ‘hey man, don’t fear. It’s only a bump within the street.’ And I used to be pondering, this can be a huge factor, and there’s no ensures in life. However ultimately it was a bump within the street.
“It tousled about half of my yr final yr as a result of I used to be frightened about stuff in the midst of remedy coping with it, however in hindsight, yeah it was a bump. I had the operation final September after which I had a few month off to heal from the operations. I didn’t do chemo. I might have, however they mentioned it was going to be tough on my listening to and I don’t wish to fiddle with hat. So, I simply went in for six weeks of radiation. And naturally, radiation principally sucks your power. That’s the most important factor. And it burns your pores and skin wherever they’re doing it. So, it’s not enjoyable, however it’s efficient.”
Any time somebody goes via such a trial, it assessments your energy, braveness, resiliency and even your methods of fascinated by the world, your life and profession. It’s no totally different for Aldrich.
“Initially, I’m tremendous blessed to nonetheless be right here. All of us have household to take care of and I even have youthful children at dwelling, so I positively want to stay round for them, ensure every little thing’s good for them. So far as the music goes, I’m actually impressed to create. And what I imply is I feel there’s a vacuum there that I have to fill with music – issues I do know I can do and I haven’t achieved but. That’s sort of the place I’m at proper now. I’m sort of bouncing between doing loads of working towards and loads of recording, writing and stuff, in addition to touring,” he mentioned.
“Once I was getting remedy, I had a chance to take a while off. I really didn’t really feel very similar to taking part in guitar throughout that point, so I did loads of listening and that actually was sort of an fascinating factor as a result of whenever you don’t have the instrument in your hand, you begin imagining. ‘What if I performed thus? What if tried this? How about I write a music?’ It modified issues someway. You simply get impressed after which by the point I began getting again into taking part in guitar, I spotted my chops have been down. In January [2025, about four months after surgery] I went to the NAMM [National Association of Music Merchants] commerce present. Black Star Amps have put out a signature amp for me and so they wished to know if I might go in and assist the corporate and promote the amp and all that stuff. I went there and I used to be taking part in all day and I do know my taking part in was good, however it was not my finest. And that was a wake-up name that I actually wanted to get my taking part in collectively once more. So, that’s what I’ve been doing.”
Whereas it’s nonetheless early days when it comes to what his long-term prognosis is, Aldrich mentioned the information up to now has been very constructive and really encouraging.
“It’s nonetheless an space of enchancment day by day. There’s some scar tissue the place they made the incisions on my neck as a result of there’s every kind of stuff there. Nevertheless it’s slowly coming again to life. You recognize, I can’t actually complain as a result of so many different issues that have been mistaken are actually higher. My style buds have been gone; my ears have been tousled. I couldn’t open my jaw. There’s an entire variety of issues that have been tough. Little by little every little thing is sort of subsiding. The one factor that’s left is a little bit of numbness in my neck the place they made the incision. After which the scar tissue as a result of I’ve loads of it constructed up. However, I really feel good, and I do know I’ve received lots of people praying for me.”
For extra details about The Useless Daisies, Lookin’ For Bother and any future touring plans, go to https://thedeaddaisies.com, or the band’s social media accounts.
For extra data on Aldrich, go to https://dougaldrich.burningrain.internet, or his socials.
- Jim Barber is a veteran award-winning journalist and writer primarily based in Napanee, Ontario, Canada, who has been writing about music and musicians for greater than 30 years. In addition to his journalistic endeavors, he works as a communications and advertising specialist and is an avid volunteer in his neighborhood. Contact him at jimbarberwritingservices@gmail.com.