We were happy to hear our good friend Brent Fitz was coming to town to speak (and play a bit of drums) at Long & McQuade's new South location. Brent was there as part of the "All Access Music Tour" which allows successful Canadian working musicians to speak and share their experiences with the public. Brent told stories and shared pictures of various experiences throughout the years of him being a drummer.
Some of the highlights of the evening:
-Brent showed the crowd a picture of young version of him with Gregg Bisonette at a drum clinic when he was younger.
-He showed a picture of him as a teen with Tommy Lee. He explained that when he was a young teen and his parents suggested he get a job, he answered an add to teach drums at a music store (instead of working at somewhere like a fast food place). He said this allowed him the opportunity to meet some of his influences like for example when the store needed someone to deliver drum equipment to Tommy Lee (when Motley Crue was in Winnipeg playing a show that night) he volunteered!
-He displayed a very polite rejection letter from Ozzy Osbourne that he received in the early 90s after sending in a package to audition to be his drummer. The humbling experience taught him that you have to put in you 10,000 hours and work your way into the circle before any acceptance and success can be achieved.
-He showed a clip of playing with Vince Neil, Kerri Kelli and Jason Hook.
-He talked about playing with Union, Alice Cooper, The Guess Who, Theory of a Deadman, Econoline Crush, and Harlequin. And how important it is to always be prepared, and explained how he prepares with short notice.
-He showed an awesome montage 'Back from Cali' video of the Slash shows in Europe this summer.
-He talked about getting out of his comfort zone and the importance of being a well rounded musician to achieve success. He filled in for our friend Todd Kerns playing bass when he had to fly home from Moscow to have emergency surgery as his retina had detached. He only had a few hours to rehearse and they played in front of thousands of people. The drum tech filled in for Brent.
-He played drums along to songs by bands he's played with such as Slash, Harlequin, Econoline Crush and the Guess Who.
Brent was a very entertaining and inspirational.
Brent's official page:
http://www.brentfitz.com
Check out Slash's page for upcoming tour dates with Ozzy!
http://slash.ultimate-guitar.com/
http://www.long-mcquade.com/page/eventshome/
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