So here’s a first look at my new video for the single, My Liberty. It will be released on i-Tunes June 12th, and was directed by Jules Stewart. Jules directed the movie K-11 that I shot last Fall. This is the first time any footage from the movie has been seen and from the opening shot of Luis’ tattooed Fuck You eyelids (he plays ‘Shyboy’ in the movie) you get the feeling that it’s not Bambi or Gone With The Wind we’re talking about here! It’s a dark, twisted journey through the K-11 unit of the Los Angeles county jail – transexual, bisexual and transgendered inmates, a drug addicted guard, prison sex, a fashion show…..what more could you want?!?! I wrote the song while I was on set and Jules shot some extra footage with me after we wrapped and came up with this video. The full version has loads of clips from the movie and we will have an 8 page downloadable PDF booklet available as well. The single, the video and the booklet will all be available on June 12th.

It’s no secret that I am a huge fan of Ginger Wildheart and all his various personas and projects. From the first time I saw The Wildhearts in a shitty bar in Camden, I was slightly confused as to just HOW anyone could write music like that? Time signatures that seemed to be random and non-sensical… and yet they made perfect sense. Chords and riffs that came out of left field, unexpectedly… and yet fit the song like a glove. Harmonies everywhere, big chunky guitar tones and choruses… oh my God, choruses for days. Huge slabs of poptastic wonder, but with caustic, abrasive lyrics that made everyone sing along in a unified, metaphorical “middle finger in the air” kinda way. I know I sound like a music journalist right now, but quite simply, along with the Sex Pistols and David Bowie, The Wildhearts completed my unholy trilogy of life-changing musical experiences. So when, in 2009, Ginger called me and asked if I wanted to play a few shows in Los Angeles with a set list comprised of all Wildhearts songs….hahaha!!….does the Pope shit in the woods? Yeah, it was awesome. But while we were doing those shows, we squeezed in two days at a recording studio, with producer Mike Clink at the helm. And I got to experience Ginger as a songwriter – the guy is a fucking machine, with riffs and lyrics flying out all over the place! The first thing he said when we sat down to write this song together is…” I think we should write a song that’s just pretty much all chorus. Let’s have a chorus, and then it goes to a different section that’s also a chorus, and then we do it again with another section”… OK Ging! Whatever you say!!! It was a great experience and one I hope to repeat at some point. The track was available on ‘The Haiti Project’ charity album that the wonderful Gav put together. But we decided this track should be out there and available to everyone – for free. So here it is again – The Mystery Song – enjoy. And I think it’s about time we did another Ginger And Friends in Los Angeles, so start hassling him, people!!

THE SONIC GRAFFITI – “MYSTERY SONG”

Every so often, I find myself lying around early in the morning (thanks to some weird insomnia thing I’ve developed in the past few years) and reflecting on certain things. Certainly I wouldn’t wish the inside of my head on my worst enemy… it’s a strange and colorful place full of contradictions, uncertainties and opposing thoughts. Occasionally it spits out a great song, or a good performance but a lot of the time I long for a volume control for my brain! It’s interesting – my creative drive comes from the same dark corners that drive me crazy from time to time. That’s why I have a blog – because guess what…. I can throw my random shit out there in some kind of cathartic haze, and in the process, clear my mind and maybe connect with someone else that feels the same way. Yesterday I was a judge at the SHRED KIDS CANCER event at the House Of Blues, along with Franky Perez, Shavo Odadjian, DJ Lethal and Dave Kushner. It was incredible to see so many parents actually encouraging their kids to play music, to be in a band, to rock out on a stage and to write their own songs. And it got me thinking that when I was that age, I had the same confusions and contradictions running around my brain as I do now, but nowhere to direct it all – no way to figure out that it was normal, that others felt the same, that those thoughts and feelings could be turned into music, film, art, text…. and speak to other people. The event was heartwarming and mind-blowing – those kids are amazing musicians and great songwriters, and Teagan Stedman (the kid who STARTED the charity and ORGANIZED the whole thing!!) is a huge inspiration, not only to his peers and his friends, but to me and the other judges and anyone else that was in the building yesterday. Thank you to everyone involved for making it an amazing day.

I’ll be hitting the European stage again this summer with Billy Idol and the boys, and I’m looking forward to getting started with the rehearsal process. I recently wrote the following to describe how I feel, being a part of Billy’s band… “Playing rhythm guitar for Billy Idol is as satisfying for me as lying on a sandy beach in the Seychelles, getting fed slices of fresh coconut by a naked, suntanned young lady while listening to ‘Never Mind The Bollocks’ and watching dolphins frolic in the crystal clear waters”. Yeah, that pretty much sums it up! And we’ll also be doing a few songs at the eighth Annual MusiCares MAP Fund® Benefit Concert, honoring Jerry Cantrell and Neil Lasher at Club Nokia in Los Angeles on Thursday May 31st. The event is always a good night out, with loads of faces showing up that I haven’t seen for ages, great bands, raising money for a wonderful organization…. and this year we get to perform and be a part of the whole thing. I did it a few years back with Camp Freddy and we had a blast doing a few songs with Steven Tyler and Slash, so it’s an honor to be heading back this year with Billy.

While I was shooting the movie K-11 last year, I got the opportunity to write a song for the closing credits of the movie. The song is called ‘My Liberty’ and was an interesting and fulfilling departure for me, musically. The movie is a dark and twisted journey through a world behind bars – a world full of sexually ‘left-of-center’ characters doing time in a special unit of the LA County jail. So the song that came out of me (out of that same place I described earlier in this blog entry!) is a more ethereal, acoustic/percussion type piece and I am really happy with the finished thing. We made a video for the song (directed by K-11 director, Jules Stewart) and the song, video and 8 page booklet will be released on I-Tunes Worldwide on June 12th. I also have some tentative plans for another summer release… an EP of six songs with a couple of friends of mine… but lets see if we can finish it before we start talking about it, right? If the plan actually DOES come together, you’ll read about it first right here.

Finally, I can tell you that on May 19th, a special line-up of Camp Freddy will be performing at Linda Perry’s “An Evening With Women” event at the Beverly Hilton Hotel. As Dave and Chris will be out on the road that night, we will be joined by Linda’s bass player, Paul Ill and my brother in arms on lead guitar, Mr Steve Stevens. And I can tell you that the guest singers that night will all have something in common… I, for one, am very excited to play this one!! To find out what that is, I suggest that you get over to their site, purchase yourself a ticket (and a few for your friends) to support the cause, and enjoy a fine evening of dinner and dance!! That’s all I got for you guys right now – today is the opening day of the MotoGP season in Qatar, and just like a lot of you do on Football or Basketball season opening games day, I intend to crack open the chips and dip, ignore the phone, and cheer on my boy Ben Spies to the podium. If you think you don’t like motorcycle racing but have never ACTUALLY watched it…. try it. You might like it! Have a good weekend, be happy, play nice, and don’t do anything I wouldn’t do. Hahaha!!

Billy

I’m very happy to tell you that I will be performing with Billy Idol, Steve Stevens, Derek Sherinian, Stephen McGrath and Jeremy Colson at the eighth Annual MusiCares MAP Fund® Benefit Concert, honoring Jerry Cantrell and Neil Lasher at Club Nokia in Los Angeles on Thursday May 31st. The concert will raise funds For MusiCares’ Addiction Recovery Services and all proceeds will benefit the MusiCares MAP Fund, which provides members of the music community access to addiction recovery treatment regardless of their financial situation. Also performing will be Duff McKagan, Mark Lanegan and Alice In Chains. Steve-O will host the event and Moby will DJ. The MusiCares Foundation® is very close to my heart, Jerry is a friend and deserves this night and I’m so happy that we will be part of the event this year. The photograph above is just one of my favorite moments with Jerry on a Camp Freddy stage. The MusiCares Foundation® offers programs and services to members of the music community as well as nationwide educational workshops covering a variety of subjects, including financial, legal, medical, and substance abuse issues. This special dinner and concert offers Living Room Sets that seat 10 for $12,500, Individual Floor Seats for $1,250 per person, and VIP Balcony Seats for $100 per person. General Admission Balcony Seats for $55 per person are available only through Ticketmaster at www.ticketmaster.com.

A few days ago, I drove out to North Hollywood to see photographer Adam Bouska and the people over at the NOH8 campaign – a charitable organization whose mission is to promote marriage, gender and human equality through education, advocacy, social media, and visual protest. On November 4, 2008 Proposition 8 passed in California, amending the state Constitution to ban same-sex marriage. The absolute ridiculousness of this caused a huge groundswell of support for Adam and his partner Jeff Parshley, and the image of people with duct tape over the mouth (symbolizing our voices being silenced by Prop 8 and other similar legislation worldwide) and the NOH8 logo on the cheek has become nothing short of iconic. Anyone can help – anyone can be involved – check out the NOH8 site, see the amazing images that Adam has created, and add your own voice of support by CLICKING HERE TO FIND OUT MORE ABOUT NOH8.

So this morning, we announced the summer 2012 Billy Idol shows (there will be more announced in the near future) and I have to say that spending a month or so running around Europe playing rock n roll doesn’t suck! The timing is great – I start a movie a few days after I get back (can’t give you the details just yet but I’m definitely excited with this one!) – so what better way to blow off some steam and prepare for a film than hitting Europe with Billy and the boys. If you are a Billy Idol fan, you can grab pre-sale tickets to select shows by subscribing to www.billyidol.net and becoming a member – we will be offering some tickets exclusively to members later this week for some of the gigs. Either way, for me, it’s getting back on the road and immersing myself in guitars, busses, planes, hotels….. and the ubiquitous search for a Starbucks. The dates announced so far are:

Tue 6/26 Arena: Moscow, Russia
Fri 6/29 Peace and Love Festival: Borlange, Sweden
Sat 6/30 Kollen Festival: Oslo, Norway
Mon 7/02 Musikhuset Posten: Odense, Denmark
Wed 7/04 Tollwood Festival: Munich, Germany
Fri 7/06 Moon and Stars Festival: Locarno, Switzerland
Sat 7/07 Villa Contarini: Padova, Italy
Sun 7/08 Porsche Arena: Stuttgart, Germany
Tue 7/10 Stadtpark: Hamburg, Germany
Wed 7/11 Zitadelle: Berlin, Germany
Fri 7/13 Glam Rock Festival: Linz, Austria
Sat 7/14 Forestglade Festival: Weisen, Austria
Fri 7/20 Marés Vivas Festival: Oporto, Portugal
Sat 7/21 Bikers Festival: Faro, Portugal

And also, I can tell you that around that time, I will be releasing a single with a video for the track “My Liberty” that I wrote for the movie I shot late last year – “K-11″. I play a prison inmate called “Hollywood” in the Jules Stewart directed film, and during my time on set, I wrote and recorded the song that plays over the end credits. Jules directed the music video and both the song and the video will be released this summer. I’ve seen the video and I have to say I fucking love it! She’s an awesome director and my experience both on the set of the movie, and working with her on the music video, has been nothing short of inspiring. In the meantime, life continues and the task in hand is to keep myself busy and out of trouble until the Billy Idol rehearsals start – and that’s always been the tough part for me. Today, I’m over the hill to write some music with a Rock n Roll Hall of Famer – not a bad way to start the week. See you guys in Europe this summer – can’t wait!

Billy

It’s my great pleasure to give you this free track, recorded live in London at The Scala on November 21st 2010. That night was a very special one. It was an evening we all put together to remember one of my favorite guitarists, Matthew Ashman, who died in 1995. As well as being in Adam And The Ants and Bow Wow Wow, Matthew formed The Chiefs Of Relief (with Paul Cook, Duncan Greig and Lance Burman) and when I originally had the idea to bring all those bands together one more time and play that music, I had no idea just how emotional and successful it would be. The show sold out in two days, the trip to London to rehearse and play with everyone was extremely quick and hectic, but the show ended up being one I will remember for the rest of my life. Along with all three surviving members and UK guitarist extrordinaire, Will Crewdson, I fronted the Chiefs Of Relief 2010 and sang and played 6 songs that I’ve been listening to for about 20 years. Matthew’s family were in the balcony, the Bromley posse were down the front, and we celebrated a guitarist that wrote and played on some of the best music of my youth. This track is called “Looking For The Beach” and if you’re all good boys and girls, I’ll post more from this gig soon. Let me know what you think by hitting me up on Twitter at
WWW.TWITTER.COM/BILLYMORRISON and if response is good, I’ll throw another freebie your way. For now, turn the volume up, cast your mind back to 1988, and enjoy.

CHIEFS OF RELIEF 2010 – “LOOKING FOR THE BEACH”

Seemed like the right day to update the blog and post a little gratitude. Birthdays…. not always a huge fan myself, but I woke up to so many messages that I felt compelled to put fingers on keys. It’s strange, this business of life. It knocks you down, you climb up again. You achieve personal and professional success, but minimize your achievements in your own head. We suffer emotional heartache and financial fears, we fight against voices in our heads that talk shit to us, and then we rise above it all and do great things. I have to be so careful not to slip into worry, remorse or self-pity. It’s ALL about perception. With so much sadness and pain in the world, who am I to spend even a moment feeling anything less than 100% grateful and humble. I can easily stare into the bubble of my own, small life and talk myself into the dark – into the blackness. But SO many people wished me a Happy Birthday today – people I know intimately and people who I’ve never met. My perception shifted immediately. I cannot tell you all how much I value my life at this moment and every single person in it. Coming up 17 years ago, I was physically deteriorating rapidly, mentally devoid of any human rationale, and spiritually bankrupt. To be standing on my own two feet, with enough brain cells left to string a sentence together or have the capacity to love or to play an instrument….. it’s beyond words.

Last night I was lucky enough to go to the ‘intimate’ Van Halen show at The Forum. A huge arena with just 2000 of the bands ‘closest friends and family’!! The gig did a number of things for me. It reinforced my appreciation of the band. They sounded tight, loud, powerful and put on a hell of a show. It says something when a band can simply ignore FIVE albums (with another singer) and still fill a whole Arena set with classic after classic. The gig also lifted my spirits and made me excited to hit the road. I STILL get to do that – I get to do the exact same thing. It blows me away and I cannot wait for the summer. And it made me think of the human spirit – something that Eddie and Diamond Dave have shown over the years, and something that I’ve had to fight for, to find, to uncover, more than once in my lifetime. We are amazing creatures and we have the capability to achieve such great things. But it takes effort. Some decide the effort isn’t worth it. And they wither away – they fade and die. But some stand up against such huge odds and such seemingly insurmountable difficulties and they find the spirit to carry on and to grow and change. These people inspire me. These people make me think….”well maybe it IS worth it”… and I find out it is. Thank you ALL for being a part of that journey for me.

Billy

So the wonderful people over at Gibson USA have decided that I can give away a guitar at the NAMM show this year. Free. Gratis. It’s yours. You DO however need to do a few things. First of all, you have to be in the Gibson Booth (number 303AB) at the NAMM show this coming Saturday January 21st at 5.00pm. You also need to be following @gibson90210 AND @billymorrison on Twitter. There will be two passwords released on Saturday morning – one on each Twitter account. And finally, you need to fill out an entry form at the Gibson Booth ANY TIME during the NAMM show, which starts on Thursday January 19th. Simply stop by the Gibson Booth at any time and fill out a form which will be entered into the draw. At 5.00pm on Saturday I will draw a name – if you tell me the two passwords, I’ll hand you a brand new, wonderfully shiny and ever so gorgeous Gibson USA Billy Morrison Signature Les Paul guitar. Now that’s not bad, right? So follow us on Twitter and come down to Namm. There may be a new axe in it for you.