Marshall Of Rock

Even though Dee Snider and Tom Morello won't be representing at the Republican National Convention in Tampa, Florida this week, there will still be some rockin' going on. Lynyrd Skynyrd, Jack Blades of Night Ranger/Damn Yankees and 3 Doors Down are all part of the festivities but only one band will head to Florida to make some big, big bucks to take part in a private Mitt Romney fundraising event.

TMZ reports that the veteran rockers will receive an incredible $500K payout for appearing at the event this Thursday night (Aug. 30) in Tampa. The group will reportedly play a 90-minute set for those in attendance. The group don’t feel they are making a political statement either way by performing at the event, and plan on treating the show like it’s just another gig. Neal Schon‘s girlfriend, Michaele Salahi, who first came to fame for gatecrashing a White House shindig with her ex-husband, will also be in attendance.

Jack Blades, bassist, lead singer and front man of Night Ranger and Damn Yankees is also participating in the 2012 Republican National Convention, performing “Back in the Game,” the lead track from his latest solo effort, Rock ‘n Roll Ride, and make appearances in support of Mitt Romney, Paul Ryan and other GOP candidates today (Aug. 28).

"This country was built on the hard work of individual Americans who took a chance and pursued a dream," says Blades, who has sold more than 25 million albums throughout his remarkable career and performed in front of millions of fans worldwide. "Too often today I see that sort of initiative being discouraged and punished. We can do better. That's why I'm honored to have been asked to be involved in the convention."

Lynyrd Skynyrd is made their third appearance at a Republican Convention in their career with a performance at a private fundraiser on Sunday, followed by playing Monday as Ann Romney was introduced to convention attendees. The band members have some opinions on the state of the country with Gary Rossington telling BW&BK's “Everybody’s got a right to their own opinion, you know? I think the country is kind of on a back road now. I would like to see some changes about certain things, but you know, I don’t know what we can do. We’re a rock ‘n’ roll band. We’re more music and rock ‘n’ roll than politics.” Rossington says he considers himself more conservative than left wing, but he feels out of place talking about politics.

Instrumentalist Rickey Medlocke added, “I agree that America, first of all, is very deeply divided. One thing I don’t like is how everybody is making a racial thing out of this whole political arena that we are in. I’m Native American, so the racial thing kind of hits home with me. To be honest with you, man, I’m sick of politics here. I’ve been browbeaten by it until I’m sick of it. I’ve been slammed in my face about it, and honestly, I don’t perceive anything getting any better. I don’t know. I hope it does.”

Medlocke goes on to add, “I find that America is moving toward a certain type of government that everybody else is moving away from, and I find that very upsetting to me … I gotta tell you, Rickey Medlocke lived in some of the most magical years in this world’s history. I lived in the ’60s. I lived in the ’70s, right into the ’80s, and man it was bad to the bone.”

Medlocke says that politics is similar to rock in that everything has already been written and there’s nothing original anymore. He adds, “Politics are the same old thing. We elect people, we put them in office and guess what they do? They sell us out. They sell us down the river and we pay for it. So we try to tread lightly on the politics, although we can be very outspoken about it.”

3 Doors Down are in Tampa performing tonight at the convention. Here's a picture of voaclist Brad Arnold from the floor earlier today.

Legendary rockers STYX - Tommy Shaw, James “JY” Young, Chuck Panozzo, Lawrence Gowan, Ricky Phillips and Todd Sucherman - have teamed up with jewelry designer Diana Warner to create the Diana Warner For Styx jewelry collection, which was made available exclusively on the band’s official website on November 11th, just in time for holiday shopping.

Each piece is hand-made in Diana Warner’s New York City studio, with prices ranging from $55-$200. The first items available are eight dog tag necklaces made of 30 inch chains of gunmetal, antique gold or antique silver plate over brass. The charms are made of pewter and rose gold, gunmetal, antique gold or antique silver. They’ll also be selling guitar pick earrings available in 4 finishes: gunmetal, rose gold, antique gold and antique silver, as well as antique gold and silver charms with one of the band’s well-recognized lyrics, “Come Sail Away With Me.”

This is only the first part of the Diana Warner For Styx collection. Multiple styles of limited edition charms will be created in 2012, which will be sold in a small number and will be considered collector’s items. A full line of Diana Warner For Styx jewelry will be made available in 2012. This is the first collection Diana has designed for a band and collaborated on this project with singer/guitarist Tommy Shaw’s wife, Jeanne Shaw.

“The second we saw Diana’s pieces, we knew we wanted to work with her,” says Jeanne. “We’re so thrilled to be able to offer something very special to Styx's fans that’s worlds different than anything we’ve done before. We hope they love the collection as much as we do.”

In touring news, STYX is continuing to criss-cross the U.S. in support of REGENERATION, VOLUME I & II, a double-disc collection of re-recorded classics that was released on October 4 via Eagle Rock Entertainment. In addition to thirteen STYX classics and a brand new song “Difference In The World REGENERATION, VOLUME I & II also includes interpretations of “High Enough,” and “Coming Of Age,” originally recorded by Damn Yankees, which featured Tommy Shaw, along with Night Ranger’s Jack Blades, Ted Nugent and drummer Michael Cartellone. The band had originally re-recorded these acclaimed anthems to sell only at their live shows, as they continued to tour the globe and introduce a new generation of fans to their chart-topping hits. Now, for the first time, this music has been made commercially available.

Upcoming Tour Dates:
Dec. 16 - Savannah, GA - Johnny Mercer Theatre
Dec. 17 - Montgomery, AL - Montgomery Performing Arts Center
Jan. 25 - Anaheim, CA - The Grove
Jan. 27 - Temecula, CA - Pechanga Casino
Jan. 28 - Reno, NV - Silver Legacy Casino
Feb. 10 - Las Vegas, NV - Green Valley Ranch/Grand Events Center
Feb. 11 - Wendover, NV - Peppermill Concert Hall
Mar. 9 - Miami, FL Magic City - Casino Amphitheater
Mar. 10 - Silver Springs, FL - Twin Oaks Amphitheatre

VH1 Classic's "That Metal Show" will be back for season number eight on Saturday, August 20 at 11 p.m. ET/PT.A full slate of metal and hard rock icons will be a part of the upcoming season once again.

Eddie Trunk, Jim Florentine and Don Jamieson host the only TV show about all things hard rock and heavy metal. Metal musicians and rock royalty, including Lars Ulrich (Metallica), Tony Iommi (Black Sabbath, Heaven & Hell), Corey Taylor (Slipknot, Stone Sour) and Sammy Hagar (Montrose, Van Halen, HSAS, Chickenfoot), will be part of the discussions this season.

Scheduled guests:

-Corey Taylor (Slipknot, Stone Sour)
-Brad Gillis (Night Ranger, Ozzy Osbourne)
-Jack Blades (Night Ranger, Damn Yankees)
-Stephen Pearcy (Ratt)
-Tim "Ripper" Owens (Judas Priest, Yngwie Malmsteen, Iced Earth, Dio Disciples)
-Jani Lane (Warrant)
-Michael Sweet (Stryper)
-Taime Downe (Faster Pussycat)
-Tony Iommi (Black Sabbath, Heaven & Hell)
-Tom Morello (Rage Against The Machine, Audioslave)
-Doug Pinnick (King's X)
-Mike Portnoy (Dream Theater, Adrenaline Mob)
-John Sykes (Whitesnake, Thin Lizzy, Blue Murder)
-Lars Ulrich (Metallica)
-Sammy Hagar (Van Halen, Chickenfoot)
-Rick Nielsen (Cheap Trick)
-Dave "Snake" Sabo (Skid Row)
-Charlie Benante (Anthrax)
-Graham Bonnett (Alcatrazz, MSG, Rainbow)

Guest guitarists:
-Vinnie Moore (UFO)
-Tony MacAlpine
-Phil Collen (Def Leppard)
-Alex Skolnick (Testament, Savatage, Trans-Siberian Orchestra)