Lamont Van Hook

Justin and Bart sit down with music sensation Lamont Van Hook, discussing his epic musical journey culminating to his brand new album! Sit down, light up a cigar, and join the guys as they walk the path of Lamont Van Hook!

Transcript

SPEAKER_03 0:15

Welcome to the Deep Diving in the Speakeasy podcast with your hosts, Justin Reno and Bart Avery.

SPEAKER_05 0:23

Hey, super excited to be back here in the uh Speakeasy. And uh this, of course, is uh still season one. This is episode two of Deep Diving in the Speakeasy in the top secret speakeasy that only a few of us know where it exists at. Very small few. Kind of kind of cool thing here, and it's uh with Justin and Bart. And before I introduce our amazing guest tonight, um just want to say that uh we start the show off asking cigar or no cigar. So this is Mr. Lamont Van Hook, who will give much further introduction, but cigar or no cigar tonight. Always, always a cigar. Justin, what do you think? Are you gonna do a cigar? Yeah, okay. All right, I think it'd be heresy if I if I didn't, I feel I just got one more thing to say here, and then I'll start lighting up mine, and you can kind of take over here. But um, so um oh, the other question we always have is um would you like an adult beverage? There it is. Oh yeah. Oh yeah, I guess that's a yes. So we just want to thank I just this is a new addition to the podcast. So we have our bartender, Buzz, who just I'm I'm drinking a red wine. Thanks, Buzz. So Buzz is actually an interesting character. Um we're not gonna tell you a whole lot about him, but he's over here, he just stays really quiet. But he's a double lefty, and I've never met a double lefty in my life. And what that means is he's yeah, he literally has two left hands, right? It's really weird, man. I don't know how you do that, buddy. Okay, but uh yeah, thanks for the wine. Okay, so we're all served here by Buzz. I wonder how his how his golf game is.

SPEAKER_06 2:06

Double left-handed.

SPEAKER_05 2:07

I don't know how you know that's kind of a weird one, but apparently he's really good at opening bottles of wine with that uh the two left hands. So I'm lighting my cigar. So um, before I take my first puff, let's do a proper introduction to Mr. Lamont Van Hook. Um tell us a little bit about yourself, my friend.

SPEAKER_02 2:27

I um I was gonna be really silly. Let's let's start with that. We like we like silliness. We like silliness.

SPEAKER_06 2:34

It's the beauty of this, man. You literally received no guidance or any rules when you walked in and started to do this, and that's the beauty of this, is that you you can do legitimately whatever you want. Just go for it. If you if you want to do like an Irish jig while talking on here, you can. It's okay, and it's fine. I don't know if you're Irish or not. I am part Irish. Aren't we all?

SPEAKER_02 2:57

Actually, okay. And I actually Especially in St. Patrick's Day, right? Everybody's Irish, yeah. Gotta have a green. I actually uh researched getting an Irish passport. Um my great-grandmother was full Irish.

SPEAKER_06 3:09

Okay.

SPEAKER_02 3:09

And in my investigation, I found out that my mother was still eligible to apply, but that's as far as they would go back. Right. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 3:19

But yeah. Okay. Right on the on my Irish uh can phone. Yeah. Alrighty, then I liked it.

SPEAKER_05 3:26

I like it. So we'd like to go right to the right to the basics. So you grew up in the Oakland area, correct? That's where you were born? I did, in the East Bay.

SPEAKER_01 3:34

East Bay, okay.

SPEAKER_05 3:36

Um, we need it. We need a cut, we need a cutter for uh, I think we uh see Buzz. Hey Buzz. I'm sorry, I wasn't pre-cut. Buzz doesn't do Buzz doesn't do the cigars, he just does the drinks, but that's okay. Because he can't cut a cigar with two left hands. It's kind of weird. Okay, there it goes.

SPEAKER_02 3:53

We're gonna have to show Buzz how to get that.

SPEAKER_05 3:55

Yeah, no, we got we got the cigar thing. That's a major critical part of this whole uh podcast is to get the cigars going right. So anyway, you started uh you grew up in Oakland?

SPEAKER_02 4:05

I didn't know in the East Bay. Okay. I did, and I still love the East Bay. I was just home uh maybe three weeks ago, and you know, so many things are the same, but the traffic is worse than I remember it. You know, it's not quite as gnarly as LA traffic, but it is getting there. It's getting there, but uh yeah, I love the bay.

SPEAKER_05 4:27

Yeah, okay. So you um obviously we're gonna get into your incredible career, but um maybe just give us a little uh taste of your childhood growing up in the Bay Area and kind of you know what were your influences to get to you get you to where you are today.

SPEAKER_02 4:46

I was always around music. Uh my mom and some of my cousins were in a gospel six tech uh called the Spiritual S, and I was a rehearsal baby and I looked forward to going to rehearsals, and usually they would make the kids like go in one of the spare bedrooms and play or watch cartoons or something while the adults were working and rehearsing, but uh they figured out very early on that I liked being in the room. I liked being in the room where the music was being made. So uh, you know, grew up doing that and uh in the bands in in school and and grew up started playing in in church and playing clubs when I was, I think, 14. Um not by the book, because I was way underage. My uh cousin used to put me in one of his oversized coats and and take some mascara and draw a mustache on my face and tell me to play. I was playing drums at that time and tell me to play. Oh, you were playing drums? I didn't know. I was playing drums at that time. Yeah. Okay. Uh and tell me to just play with my head down because I was singing and playing drums. But uh Yeah, I wouldn't trade a moment of that for nothing in this world.

SPEAKER_05 5:58

It was good. And and and just so we without skipping ahead too much here, uh, for people that may just be listening to this podcast and wondering who the heck Lamont Van Hook is.

SPEAKER_03 6:09

Yes.

SPEAKER_05 6:09

Um yeah, it's singing is your life, I would say, and you have a lot of other interesting aspects in your life, but that's why we're kind of doing our deep dive here in your early ages of what got you into the whole music scene. So your your uh your folks or your your uh siblings got you uh were encouraging you, or yeah, that's good, man.

SPEAKER_02 6:33

My entire both sides of my family are very uh musical, and and that was my biggest training ground watching my parents and my cousins and my grandparents and my aunties and uncles sing and play their instruments. And just awestruck every time. Every time. Just awestruck and couldn't wait to grow up and be able to do that. Okay.

SPEAKER_05 6:58

Yeah, you know I I let me just say, you said something about a band, your first band. Did you I mean did you guys have a name?

SPEAKER_02 7:05

Um did you did you do a few shows together or we were playing clubs, and my cousin Bill Alams was the band leader, and I think the band was called the Sound Machine, I think. I was 14, and I'm not 14 anymore. That was a long time ago. Trying to remember, but I think the name of the band was The Sound Machine. We'll go with that, right?

SPEAKER_06 7:30

Yeah, and you came up with that name.

SPEAKER_02 7:32

No, I was glad to be able to do that. You can take credit for it. It's okay if you want to. Hey, all right, then fine. All right, this yeah, it was all my idea.

SPEAKER_05 7:40

Didn't didn't that didn't that name get used again down the road that maybe you could like have a lawsuit or something like that?

SPEAKER_02 7:45

Yeah, I I've I've heard of it, yes.

SPEAKER_05 7:47

Didn't Barry Gordy or somebody like that like kind of steal that from you?

SPEAKER_02 7:50

So now again, Justin, yeah, that was not my idea. I did not make that. All right. Good. That's on tape now. Yeah. Yeah.

SPEAKER_05 7:58

That's great, dude. So you're in high school, you're uh getting good grades, I assume, or are you just kind of I was a decent student when I cared to be.

SPEAKER_02 8:07

Right. I was a decent student when I didn't care to be. I was you know, but I can't I yeah, I made I made good grades because my mother more than my dad was more uh uh adamant about keeping the grades up.

SPEAKER_05 8:21

Okay, and then yeah, did you did you kind of like at some point in your life just go like 100% this is what I'm gonna do. I'm gonna be a singer.

SPEAKER_02 8:30

Yes, and there's a story there. Let's hear it. That's what this is all about, brothers. There we go.

SPEAKER_06 8:35

Our first our first story of the of the episode. I can't wait.

SPEAKER_02 8:38

So my dad and my brother bonded, one of their bonding points was over sports, which was so not my thing. Uh, but I kind of not fake the funk, I kind of uh participated to kind of be able to hang out with them. Yeah. So, you know, my uh brother was really good at baseball and football and water skiing and snow skiing and just a real athlete. I wanted to play my music, play my records, and play my piano. Uh but I, eighth grade, I think it was, I went out for the basketball team and made the team. Wow. I don't even know what made me go out for the team, but I made the team.

SPEAKER_06 9:16

And what position did they give you? I was a forward. Forward, okay. Small, power?

SPEAKER_02 9:23

I don't know the differences.

SPEAKER_06 9:24

I mean, were you tall or were you were you shorter than you? I was average, average. So probably a small forward then. You're probably playing a three.

SPEAKER_02 9:30

Maybe. So uh the season is going on, and my uh stepmom is riding my dad's ass. You know, this this uh boy's inviting you to his games and you don't go to his games and you need to go to his games and da-da-da-da-da-da-da. And this particular game, it might have been the next game after that tongue-lashing from my stepmommer, uh, I'm dribbling the ball down court, and I look up and see my dad waving at the top of the bleachers. And I'm like, oh man, my dad is here. It's cool, he came. And I didn't realize that I was about to stop and shoot. I was at the wrong end of the court. And the whole gym was screaming. I thought I was doing good. I was just dribbling down the anyway. That is the moment that I decided I'm gonna be. It was that moment's like, this is for the birds, man. I know what I can do.

SPEAKER_06 10:23

You didn't know what I can do. You didn't pick up on the fact that when anybody else around you at the other end of the court did not everybody else was around you. Nobody's guarding you, everybody's cheering for it.

SPEAKER_05 10:34

Other teams like, come on, look. Exactly. Isn't it correct me if I'm wrong, but if he shoots at who, they get they get the points? I don't know how that works in basketball.

SPEAKER_02 10:42

I've heard different things.

SPEAKER_06 10:43

I mean, you know it depends on what kind of league it is, it can, but yeah. Otherwise, they'll just they'll just call it as a so as a technical or something. Yeah, maybe so. Probably kick him out of the game.

SPEAKER_05 10:55

Yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 10:56

Well, I didn't go yeah, I didn't even go back to practice after that. Dude, that's that's it. That was that was the end of your basketball correct.

SPEAKER_05 11:02

So that so did you realize when you're holding a microphone which end you're supposed to sing into, or is that kind of a good that was that was uh kind of second night job?

SPEAKER_02 11:13

I was a big ham. Okay, good. Okay, good okay.

SPEAKER_05 11:15

That was a big ham as a because I we I I just didn't want to see a trend happening here where it's like you don't know which which way to go, even with the wrong end of a fork.

SPEAKER_02 11:24

I think I got this part down, guys.

SPEAKER_06 11:26

All right. Yeah. He got the 11 part down. So you mentioned you so obviously you did you did uh you were doing drums, yes, doing piano, just did you dabble in any other uh instruments, or was those two your like main focus?

SPEAKER_02 11:37

Or my dad bought me what's called a chord organ. That was my first instrument. I think I was five or six years old. You would press a button with your left hand that would play a chord, a major or minor chord, and then you would play the melody in your left hand. And uh that was my first instrument. Then he bought me a set of drums, and I played drums up until maybe high school. I just got tired of setting them up and breaking them down and carry them to the car, carry them from the car. At church, there was always a piano already there, so all I had to do was show up. Yeah. I'm doing that. Yeah. I played my dad's tenor sacks in fourth grade for one year, but it was too big and too heavy. So uh piano and voice became and this was kind of in the high school era, right? High school, just high school that's when I started playing uh piano.

SPEAKER_05 12:30

Okay, but how much singing? Forever. Okay, but forever. At what at some point, maybe in the high school uh era of your life, um did did people start coming up to you and saying, like, dude, you got a gift. Because we all know you have a gift, but at some point I think, you know, just just to kind of go back a little bit on uh my early life of listening to music in the 60s, like Karen Carpenter used to just sit there and play the drums. I know she was a drummer. Yeah, she was a great drummer, but but it's like oh, and and she can sing. Yes, but at some point somebody just goes like no no no no more drums. Yes, did you have that moment? Like, like just freaking sing well and keyboards too, I know. Because we'll get into that with your first big break.

SPEAKER_02 13:14

Not so much. Uh no one made me choose, so I did it. And I think being able to sing and accompany yourself, that's a skill set that a lot of people don't have. Uh so it was always encouraged. Yeah, nobody made me choose, thankfully. Because I don't know what I would have chosen because I love them both. Yeah, yeah. I don't know what that would be.

SPEAKER_05 13:40

Okay, so let's um let's go ahead to Howard University.

SPEAKER_01 13:46

Yay!

SPEAKER_02 13:50

That's where I grew up, that's where I grew up. You know, not having to answer to anybody. You can stay out as late as you want, you can do whatever you want. My parents were on the other side of the country. Yeah, um, and I will say that, you know, I did some really dumb things as a as a kid. Sure. Uh thankfully my dumb stuff didn't cost me a lot, like it cost some of the other kids, um, which is a learning experience too. Um yeah, I'm grateful for my time in DC. However, at the end of my four years, I was out of there so fast. The snow in the winter and the absolute sticky in the spring and the summer, I needed to get back to California just for some normalcy. But you know, the people there, you know, some of my uh colleagues, my college mates, uh I'm very much in touch with, and I have two professors that are still living that I'm in touch with. Okay. Yeah, so I treasure my time in DC.

SPEAKER_06 14:53

Is so i is your time at Howard, is that where you kind of honed in on the musical aspect? Or was that where you really got in depth with it and started to figure out exactly what style of music you wanted to do? Or did you already have that idea like of what genre you wanted to be in early on anyway?

SPEAKER_02 15:13

I thought I had an idea. Okay, and you know, that at that young of an age, you know, you think you know everything, right? Sure. Not not only about you, about everything. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Uh and it's so interesting. I didn't get accepted uh to the music department uh as a result of my audition tape. I I did not know at that time Howard's uh the music department curriculum was uh very uh European based. Okay. Lots of classical music. The jazz uh program was very new. I think it started maybe 78, 79, and I got there in 81. So it was still very new, and that's where they could plug me in once I got there. Um but that's uh that's where I had to do music every day to catch up because I didn't I didn't take any formal lessons until I got to college. Right. So I was very much way behind the other kids. So I really had to buckle in.

SPEAKER_06 16:13

You're super green.

SPEAKER_02 16:14

And yeah, and you know, the ear was there, but I couldn't read any music, couldn't I read chord changes, but that's I had to do it every day just to compete. Yeah, you know, because you know, I was B R O C as I say, we were all broke, so I had to uh get scholarships and grants and a few loans to finish school, but I was out in four years and back in California because the snow is beautiful to look at, but I don't like being called Did you make any uh incredible relationships?

SPEAKER_05 16:43

There there were, correct me if I'm wrong, but there were quite a few very famous musicians, singers that went to Howard, right? Absolutely, like throw a couple names.

SPEAKER_02 16:53

Absolutely. Uh Angela Wimbush, uh Jesse Norman, uh Wayne Lindsey, uh uh Wallace Roney, um Roberta Flack. Roberta Flack and Donna Hatton. Oh my god. Um it's just uh uh Chadwick Bozeman, um not in the music department, but in the drama department. Just the the fine arts, college of fine arts at Howard is chock full of inspiration. And that was not lost on me while I was there. I really wanted to go there. One of my older cousins, Daryl, was in school uh there, and I wanted to go and get some of what uh Donnie and Roberta got. And I got to work with uh Donnie's uh vocal teacher and uh yeah, he remained a dear friend until he passed. It was just uh it was good. Yeah. It was good. Yeah, DC was very good to me. It was very good.

SPEAKER_05 17:49

So you came back to sunny, non-humid, non generally non-humid, snow snow California. Yes. And you were in your early 20s, I would assume. 21 still.

SPEAKER_02 18:04

Yeah, 21 a couple weeks later.

SPEAKER_05 18:06

That's pretty yeah, 20. That's pretty young to graduate. Four years.

SPEAKER_02 18:09

My birthday is always in the summer, so gotcha. Yeah. I never got to have the school class party because my birthday was always right after we get out of school. But it's all good.

SPEAKER_05 18:20

I know from I know for me, and and I know for a lot of people, you get out of college and it's like now what?

SPEAKER_01 18:26

Yeah.

SPEAKER_05 18:26

Because you're like, okay, that's great. I just went to Howard University, I got a degree. Yeah, I I I can sing, I can now I can read music, I write music. Yeah. Now what do I do?

SPEAKER_02 18:36

Exactly. It was kind of terrifying, Bart. It was for me. You know, I figured out, okay, I know how to do school. Got it down. But now the uh dean of the College of Fine Arts at that time, Dr. Vader Butcher, she became a friend. And she found me up on the third floor in the music department and and kind of whispered, I have your degree in my office. Do you want to see it? And I was like, Yeah. So I followed her back down to her office, and she got this big box and rummaged through it a bit, and found my degree and opened it up and showed it to me. And when I went to grab it, she grabbed it back and said, Oh, it's mine until I give it to you on Saturday. This is still mine. I just wanted to wanted you to see it.

SPEAKER_05 19:22

But um, yeah, lots of great memories of our so you're you're back in California, back in Oakland.

SPEAKER_02 19:28

Uh I went back to San Jose.

SPEAKER_05 19:30

Okay, San Jose.

SPEAKER_02 19:31

Yeah.

SPEAKER_05 19:31

So what's your next move? You gotta make a you gotta make some money.

SPEAKER_02 19:35

Gotta make some money. I uh got a job as the minister of music at a church in San Jose. Okay, and that was great uh experience, just really running the department, and now this group of singers and players are gonna play and sing the music that I pick. And yeah, and it's for a church service, so it's gotta be inspirational. So that uh that time I uh was great. I worked there for 18 months and then I moved to LA. I started there in May or June of 85. Must have started in June of 85 because I graduated in 80 in May of 85.

SPEAKER_06 20:16

That's when I was born.

SPEAKER_02 20:17

Okay. June of 85. You're making me feel making me feel old, Justin. Uh, when's your birthday? June 7th. Ah, I'm June 18th. Hey. Gemini Power. Gemini. Uh we died twice. Oh, I'm gonna say that. That's pretty good. That's pretty good. Yeah, but I moved to LA in October of 86.

SPEAKER_05 20:39

And that's that's where there are bupportunities for musician singers, as opposed to, you know, and and even though the bay has been a hotbed of music forever, sure.

SPEAKER_02 20:52

All genres of music from Slying the Family Stone to the Grateful Dead to Confunct. The hate Ashbury area up there, all of that. Yeah, just great music. Um, but there were not the quality of opportunities, nor the quantity of opportunities in the bay, because I did not want to move to LA. Yeah. I was just, I'd rather be at home, but had another uh more than a few friends who became my colleagues as well down here saying, if you want to do this, you gotta you gotta be down here.

SPEAKER_06 21:27

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 21:28

So that you can get the last minute call. Nobody's gonna fly you from the bay to be at a session in two hours.

SPEAKER_06 21:33

Yeah, exactly.

SPEAKER_02 21:33

You know, they're gonna call somebody that lives here. So um, so I moved. And I did not starve. I was living with family, but I was uh it took a while for things to start moving. Right. Yeah, and I ended up moving back to the bay after three years four, maybe three years, and then once I got my first big gig, it kind of re after the That tour was over, it kind of required me to move to LA and that made it easier because people knew me from touring, so I could work. Yeah. It wasn't kind of a complete unknown. And what was that gig that my first big gig was Rod Stewart?

SPEAKER_06 22:13

Okay, there it is. Okay. That's where we were.

SPEAKER_02 22:15

There it is. That's what we were waiting for. There's a payoff. That was the podcast is over.

SPEAKER_05 22:19

Okay. I mean, for the average person, you're you're you're working with Rod Stewart. Yeah. That's that's that's as good as it gets.

SPEAKER_02 22:27

But it gets way better. And I get that. It just gets different. It just keeps on getting gooder and gooder. That's what I like to say because uh that tour changed my life. That relationship changed my life. I had never seen that side of touring like that, you know, on a private plane. Only the Rich Carlton, only the four seasons, only the you know how how was Rod personally?

SPEAKER_06 22:51

Wonderful. Wonderful. Because you always hear stories about like, you know, celebrities and even like musicians, and they're like, you know, snobs or all this stuff. But I'm like, I don't ever remember ever hearing anything negative about Rod Stewart growing up, as far as like him being like he likes to hang out, he's absolutely trashy to people.

SPEAKER_05 23:11

Yeah, that's not how he gets down. I think I as I recall too, that was uh when did Maggie Mae come out?

SPEAKER_02 23:17

I think 71.

SPEAKER_05 23:19

Okay, so he was he was already he was what he was still in his prime, but he was already just huge.

SPEAKER_02 23:25

I started in '93. He was huge. Yeah. We were playing stadiums. That was like it was crazy.

SPEAKER_05 23:30

So now we're up to 1993. So that's when you first got the gig. Yes. Okay, now this the whole point of this this deep diving thing is you don't just walk up to Rod Stewart and say, hey man, I'm pretty good, man. Can you hire me? Yeah. How in the hell did you get that gig?

SPEAKER_00 23:45

Great story.

SPEAKER_02 23:46

Okay. Of course it is. So it is literally my 30th birthday, June 18, 1993. And I'm throwing myself a party. And people have started arriving uh for the party, you know, family and friends and colleagues, and we're having a great time. And the phone rings, and whoever answered the phone came and said, There's someone named Fred on the phone for you. So you know you know. Yeah, I know Fred, yeah. Great friend. One of my dearest friends, Fred. So he's calling uh to say happy birthday. He said, and I'm calling to see uh if you want to go on the road with Rod Stewart for a year. He says, uh, I did a year with Rod and two of our other friends, uh Dorian Hawley and Daryl Fennessey, sang with Rod, and they also sang with Michael Jackson, and it happened for a couple of tours that when Michael was finished, Rod would start, and vice versa. Well, this time in '93, both tours were leaving at the same time, so they had to choose. And they chose Michael, which led uh left Fred to put together a section for Rod. So he called uh in the middle of my birthday party and said, Rod, we don't have to audition. Rod told me to get whoever I want. We do have to sing for the musical director. So that year my birthday was on a Friday. He said, Can you be in LA Monday? Um just spend a night for a couple days and we'll go meet the musical director and sing for him, and that'll be it. I said, There's probably nearly a hundred people here, and for that gig, I could be in LA tonight. Yeah. I would leave right now. And uh he assured me I didn't have to do that, and I flew down Monday and met everybody, and we sang a little bit, and I was on that gig for almost eight years. And I thought I would retire from that gig because we were very close. You know, Rob would Rod was married to Rachel Hunter at the time, and they would invite me and my grandmother up to the house for dinner, cocktails, and just chill and hang and laugh and and do what we do. So yeah, they were wonderful to me. It was a great, it was a great time to be alive.

SPEAKER_05 25:50

And also, correct me if I'm wrong, you got you were playing keyboards for for Rod also at the time. I didn't know. Did you get that right off the bat or it was just singing?

SPEAKER_02 25:58

No, it was just singing to start because he had the great uh Ian McLagan was playing Keys, who was in a band with Rod called The Small Faces. Oh yeah, that was the early Rod Stewart, the Small Faces, yeah. So Ian was part of that band, and and we came into Rod's band at the same time.

SPEAKER_06 26:16

Okay.

SPEAKER_02 26:16

And uh so I think we did, you know, maybe two or three tours together, I can't remember. And then uh Ian decided to produce pursue some other things, including writing a fabulous autobiography, uh, which left the organ chair open, and I was not even seeking it. The uh we started rehearsals for the next tour, and the musical director said, Oh, I told Rod you play organ and you play well, so he's hired you to play organ now. I was like, uh Okay. What else? What else? Yeah, so I did that for a tour or two. Yeah, yeah, and it was yeah, it was it was it was fun. I do have to say though, I'd much rather be unencumbered and uh able to move around and shake my booty a little bit. I don't like having to sit in one spot and just be still. But if the uh paycheck is right, I will do exactly that. I'm flexible that way.

SPEAKER_06 27:13

So my question is is obviously we all know Rod had fantastic hair. Absolutely. That do was like iconic, right? Still is, yeah. Did did you have a wig of sorts that you would just put on every once in a while just to look like Rod just for a little bit? Uh I feel like a lot of people had it and they don't want to admit it.

SPEAKER_02 27:37

A lot of people had it.

SPEAKER_06 27:38

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 27:38

And a lot of people would come to the shows and they're Rob. Yes, men and women. And some of them looked fabulous and you know, looked really great. Some of them looked like him, but yeah, that was the thing, but not so much for me. But I think at that time I did a couple tours being uh platinum blonde, which I'm thinking about revisiting because that was fun as well. That's great.

SPEAKER_05 28:02

Okay, and we're not doing our job if we don't ask for at least one crazy Rod Stewart on tour thing that's not gonna get any of us sued.

SPEAKER_01 28:12

Oh, yeah.

SPEAKER_05 28:13

That's just a fun thing that people would just go, holy cow, because we all know, you know, back in those more so back in the 70s and 80s, but even back in the 90s, or you know, there was a lot of crazy stuff going on.

SPEAKER_06 28:24

Oh, yeah, life on tour, man. Like there's there's some stuff.

SPEAKER_02 28:27

There's some stuff. Um, but I think I came in on the tail end of the sex, drugs, and rock and roll. It was still happening, but it was kind of dying out. Uh, and now, you know, I tell people, you know, invite uh friends to come to a show. I want to come backstage. I'm like, well, that's another issue, and I can work on that, but I'm telling you, you'd probably be bored as hell because now everybody's old. Yeah. You know, instead of wanting to go and shut down the bar, people want to go back to their hotel room and read their book. Yeah. Or talk to their wives or talk to their kids. It's it's a lot more sedate. Yeah.

SPEAKER_06 29:05

Now, which I think is we want to go back and party with Rod. No, he's drawing right now. Yes. Don't leave him alone.

SPEAKER_02 29:11

He's a big uh train uh enthusiast. So he trained. Yeah, he does the model train thing big for him. Okay, that's interesting. Yeah, at that time he had a uh gigantic room uh in his home here in the LA area. Uh with the, you know, like you see in the movies, with this whole city that he had hand painted all the buildings and painted the trains and painted the trees, and and he that was something that would bring him joy going and spend some time with his trains. Uh but you're Rod Stewart in his trains. Yeah.

SPEAKER_05 29:43

Who would have thought? Okay, well, I guess we're not gonna get the the big Oh, I was gonna say because you know, our listeners are sitting on the edge of their chairs right now. We want to hear one crazy Rod Stewart story.

SPEAKER_02 29:55

I don't know how crazy it is, but this is what came to mind initially. He's a prankster. Oh, there you go. Perfect on the rotor. Pranksters, and some of them are sedate and some of them are way over the line. But anyway, um, we would be uh performing a show and during uh an instrumental solo or something that's long, we do something that's called a quick change, right? Rob would go change his shirt and jacket, and we would go change our shirt and jacket. And this particular night he was saying something along the lines of in soundcheck, you know, people are getting back from the quick change late. You need to change your change what you need to change and get back on stage so we can finish the show. So we're like, okay, it's cool, we'll be aware of that. So during the time that the singers had to do a quick change, Rod went and did his quick change first. And we come down, tear out of our jackets and shirts, put on the new shirt, and put get ready to put on the new jacket. We get one hand in, and he had tied a knot in the sleeve of all of the singers' jackets, so we couldn't we couldn't get our jackets on, and at first it was a panic until we figured out, oh, he was down here first. And sure enough, when we all did get our sleeves untied and get on the stage, he had this big grin on his face, like, got you again. And I'm sure we got him back, but I just can't remember how.

SPEAKER_06 31:15

No, that's a good one, man. What would have been great is if you just actually went out there with the tied and we're like, yeah, this is what you wanted, and this is what you get.

SPEAKER_02 31:22

And that would have been game. And he would have laughed till he couldn't. Because that's his show.

SPEAKER_06 31:26

Yes. That you have now taken his prank onto stage with. That would have been good.

SPEAKER_02 31:30

That would have been good because he was always up for fun. He's always up for fun. Yeah, still.

SPEAKER_05 31:35

So we're gonna we're we're not quite at the end yet, but we're but what we want to do is um kind of um we're gonna segue into the next part of your musical career. So let's just let's just kind of wind it up then. At some point, now when you finished uh with Rod, that was it. You never came back with Rod, it was kind of that was it type thing, or uh you went on to bigger and better things. Uh I can't remember. You've told you know, I just for uh everybody out there listening, I I've known Lamont now for I think quote well, 20 years. Probably close to 20 years. Maybe about 31 minutes. Yeah, you've about 31 minutes. About 31 minutes I've known Lamont. Yeah. But no, I but I've heard some of these stories, but I I'm never really clear whether you I know that relationship ended amicably, is did I say that word right? And uh I just think you went on to to things that you were amazing, which we'll get into in the next segment. But that was kind of at some point. How long were you with Rod then?

SPEAKER_02 32:30

Almost eight years.

SPEAKER_05 32:31

That's a long time. That's a long time. That's a long time. It's almost a decade. Yeah. Did you did you go in the studio and record with him too? Oh yeah. So you're eligible for getting platinum or gold records and stuff for that? Because I know you have a you have so we'll talk about that too.

SPEAKER_02 32:46

I think I have two plaques for Rod. Unplugged, which I did to tour, and then the next record was called Spanner in the Works, and I got a plaque for that. And I think that's it for Rod.

SPEAKER_05 32:57

Did you one more thing about uh doing what you do? Um, you know, you're you know, you're you're singing these songs and you're singing them the way that they want them to be sung, but sometimes do you just sit there and say, hey, let me just try this. What do you think? Especially in the street. Does that ever happen? Especially in a studio in a studio.

SPEAKER_02 33:15

Yeah. Sometimes live, because the live performance, some artists like the live performance to be exactly like their record, and some artists like it to have a little extra flavor, something a little different, but still something that you're not hearing every day on the album. Exactly. Otherwise, they say, you know, you can stay home and listen to the record. Yeah. You know, so when you come to a show, they've some artists want to do a little, have a little difference, but some artists want it exactly like the record, and that's it, and that's all like this note could be run on a little bit longer or sometimes or sometimes not. Yeah, you know, and it's usually cool unless they have to keep asking you, you know, can we just have it like the record? I just what you sang was beautiful, but I really want yeah the record.

SPEAKER_05 33:59

I to be honest with you, as a as a I've gone to a lot of concerts in my life, and when I see a band like Rod Stewart, I've seen Ron Stewart, and it's like you kind of want to hear the song the way you remember the song. Yes, you don't want to hear all kinds of weird stuff going on.

SPEAKER_02 34:12

Yeah, but it's very true. But a little spice is it's uh it depends on the artist. Because most of the you you really do want it to be familiar.

SPEAKER_06 34:20

You don't want to also kind of depends on the show, too, really. Or even just the location, too. Like maybe you want to do something a little bit more magical and special if you're playing Madison Square Garden. Yes. Maybe you want to do something a little bit special if you're playing like we're we've got Coachella going on. Like you want something a little bit special for those, but then keep it keep it the same throughout for you know the diehard longtime listeners.

SPEAKER_02 34:45

Yeah, you know, you got the your your last 30 minutes are nothing but the big hits. Yeah. The last that just drive them crazy and send them home. Yeah.

SPEAKER_05 34:56

Speaking of that, what was always the the you you guys would always do an encore? Oh yeah, with Ryan. What would always be the last song?

SPEAKER_02 35:03

Oh, that didn't stay the same as it would bounce around the same. Yeah.

SPEAKER_05 35:07

Yeah. Because you you don't want to do like the big hit right off the bat. You want to save it till the end, right? Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 35:14

And you know, if you're an artist like that, and some of the others I've been fortunate to work with, they have so many to choose from. Yeah. You know.

SPEAKER_06 35:21

What what was your guy? So I know a lot of a lot of artists and mainly bands though, they'll have what's called their road song. Uh-huh. Did you guys have a road song that like had to be played no matter what? That wasn't a well-known song. It wasn't a mainstream top billboard 100 hit, but it was one that was like, we really love the song, we really enjoy playing it. And even though maybe not everybody's gonna know the words, this is our road song, and we're gonna play it at every show no matter what.

SPEAKER_02 35:51

I think there were a lot of songs that had to be played since we're still talking about Rod. There were, you know, he could not do a show without singing Tonight's Tonight. He could not do a show without singing Do You Think I'm Sexy. Or Maggie May. Or Maggie May. It just is not gonna happen. It's just not gonna happen. Forever Young. It's gotta be But there were songs that were big in the UK that were not as big here. Songs like uh I Am Sailing, songs like The Killing of Georgie, uh, songs like Young Turks. Um that was my first exposure of traveling around the planet. And then these artists want to do the songs in Asia that were big in Asia, but they may not be big in South America. There's another set of big songs, right? But uh in the midst of those, the the core songs, um, like the ones we were talking about, yeah, yeah. Uh Phil Collins cannot do a show and not sing in the air tonight. It's just never gonna happen. It'd be a crime.

SPEAKER_05 36:49

It would be a crime. Do you think at some point in this podcast we're gonna talk maybe about Mr. Phil Collins a little bit? Yes, because he's just a good thing.

SPEAKER_02 36:56

Yes, because he just got a big, beautiful Prezi.

SPEAKER_06 36:59

Well, you're gonna get your wish then, because we're gonna talk about them on our next segment here coming up after the break. We're gonna take a quick break, folks. Uh quick mention of a sponsor, and then we will be right back, deep divers. Stay with us.

SPEAKER_05 37:11

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SPEAKER_06 38:09

It's such a prestigious sounding name, too. I was just a cool ass name, Lamont Van Hoek, starring in his latest role. Like it just sounds cool. I want to keep it.

SPEAKER_02 38:22

It's it's like it's like uh it's like uh and that's your real name. That is my real name. People call you that. And I have been asked, would I consider changing my name? No, no, my beach. Yeah. Your name is a lot. I was like, it's a mouthful, yes, but it's my name. And I'm keeping it. And now with the sophisticated sounds, the Le Mons van. Yeah, everybody learn how to say it as soon as I have a hit record. It'll be just fine. It's a mouthful now. Once you have the first hit record, everybody will learn your name.

SPEAKER_06 38:52

I love it. Yeah. I love it. Alright, so we were uh we were talking about your time with Rod, uh the Rod man, Mr. Rod Stewart. Great days. Great days, great times, great tours, yeah, uh, great years. He was not the only one uh that you had the privilege of performing with. Uh anybody who can work a phone or a laptop or any type of internet uh can look up your name and see the plethora of top female and male performers uh in the past got I would you say like 50, 60, 70 years? Like there's a lot of there's a lot of names that are on this list that you have performed with. Oh yeah. Uh why don't you go ahead and enlighten our listeners uh with your with your time after Rod?

SPEAKER_02 39:51

It's been a good ride. I call myself a little black boy from Oakland. It's been a good ride. Uh as far as touring, when the Rod days were over, I got to gig with Dinah Ross. I did that legend. And she was special to me. I knew some of Rod's big songs. I knew Sexy, and I knew Tonight's the Night, and I knew a couple of others, but a lot of his music for the tour, I had to learn. I had to learn very little Dinah Ross music because it was big in my house, and I knew those songs. Um and I toured with her off and on for like 12 years because around the time I got her gig, like 2000, I think I might have started with Diana in 2000, and I started with Phil Collins in 2001. And and there was some time where he would be working and she would not, or he would not be working and she would, so I could go back and forth uh between both gigs, but those two kind of happened around the same time.

SPEAKER_05 41:04

Let me stop for a second again, because I just like I was curious how you got the Rod Stewart gig, you know, and it was your good friend that uh set that up. Yeah. So like your next big gig is Diana Ross. So once again, you don't just call up Diana Ross and go, hey, everyone sing for you. How did that how did that one fall into your lap?

SPEAKER_02 41:22

Um part of it was Fred again. Fred again. I have followed his lead for so long in my life. Like, I didn't realize that you could buy a house being a backing singer. And I watched Fred buy a house. And I was like, oh my god, I could have a house. Uh he drove a Honda, so I bought a Honda. Um just stuff like that. And we've been on the not the same color. No, not the same color, but and years later. But I'm I watched this cat because he's just a successful human being.

SPEAKER_05 41:57

He's I met him, I met him several times. Yeah. Cool, cool. Just a great guy. Talented singer.

SPEAKER_02 42:04

Yeah. Songwriter, all of it. Yep. All of it. But I'm trying, I'm struggling to remember something with getting me in the room with Diana, but there was also another singer out of New York by the name of Fonzie Thornton, who was big in Luther Vandross's camp. They were dear friends, that called me about Diana as well. So I don't know who called me first, but I ended up being on the gig for a while off and on. And uh yeah, yeah, she was just huge in my house. So she's, you know, royalty as far as I'm concerned. And it was just such a pleasure, such a pleasure for uh someone to uh hire you for their tour. I liken that to my brother being picked, you know, for the street uh football game or the street softball game or something. I feel like when somebody calls me to do their tour, I'm I'm being picked for the team. And it's a good feeling. You were the number one overall draft pick. How about that? Yeah. Or you know, not even, man. I've been a part of some doozy bands. And I can't say one is my favorite uh over the over another. I I will say I've had the pleasure of being on stage with some great players and singers that require you to bring your A game. Yeah, or you'll just be left behind. Yeah. But you don't step on the stage phoning it in because it's just not that kind of gig. Oh, for sure. Uh so you know, yeah, that's that's how I came in. If you're gonna be on this stage, you better be able to play your instrument or sing, uh, or you're gonna look, you know, like a numbskull because everybody else up here is laying it down.

SPEAKER_05 43:40

Um Dana Ross, and then quickly to uh Phil Collins. And same thing, you know. Now you've got I I would call it street cred, like no, this is this guy knows what he's doing. I hope so after 40 plus years. Yeah. But even back in those days, you know, you're you're singing with Rod St. Stewart playing his keyboards for seven years. And it's not like, oh, is this guy can this guy handle the the gig, you know? Oh my god, of course he can.

SPEAKER_02 44:09

Yeah. You get that in in that kind of experience, then you start getting those other kind of calls. Uh you know. First time I worked with Sting.

SPEAKER_05 44:18

It's like Sting, you work with Sting? I didn't know.

SPEAKER_02 44:25

Really, really nice. But I'm saying the the calls that you get when people of that stature see you working with their friends. You know, yeah, can I get his number from you? Because I need a so-and-so and so and so. So uh it's uh you know, until things get rolling, it's it's you're starving. But once things do get rolling, it's it's like you know, you you got you're getting too many calls, you gotta start farming out work because you know only one fella.

SPEAKER_06 44:52

So you had a you had a background scene for Steam? Yeah. And like and like some of the some of the lyrics, like you understood? Because I and I asked this. I asked this because like you know the song Brand New Day? Yeah, you could you could play that song right now in front of me, and I couldn't tell you the words other than Brand New Day.

SPEAKER_00 45:18

You only know those three words. Yes. And I know Stevie played the played the harmonica on that stuff, but it's so funky.

SPEAKER_02 45:25

It's such a great song. But I mean he's a great, he's a great like starwriter, he's a great performer.

SPEAKER_06 45:30

Yes, but it's like sting just anunciation, just a little bit. Everyone, I want to sing along with you, but I can't, and this is all that's all I can get out.

SPEAKER_05 45:40

That's so yeah. By the way, Justin, we didn't know you could sing, man. Only sting. Only sting gibberish.

SPEAKER_06 45:46

Only sting gibberish is my only vocal talent.

SPEAKER_02 45:50

So I did uh a sting gig. I did the I worked with him the first time he did a Disney movie called The Emperor's New Group. Yep. After Phil did the Tarzan or the Brother Bear, I think. Um and we did some TV and we did the uh we did the tonight show and we did a couple of uh live concert things, but I did those promos with the Perry sisters. We were all a part of the choir for that Sting.

SPEAKER_05 46:18

Uh we love the Perry Sisters, and I know they're gonna be listening to this podcast. We love you. Yes, we do. Girls, yes. That's how we met you, by the way.

SPEAKER_02 46:26

Exactly. Exactly, Bart. Uh yeah, but Sting is the Sting is the bomb. Sting is I've just been so fortunate. Uh, you know, there are very few, and I'm not gonna call any names, but out of 40 years, there may be two people that I would choose not to work with again. Oh boy. We're not gonna ask. It's a small list. It's a small list. It's a small list. It's been good because it's I've been pretty busy over the last few decades. And for the most part, it's been absolutely wonderful.

SPEAKER_05 46:53

Ever since I met you, you're you're always working. Thank the Lord. You know, every once in a while. I remember one time you went for your birthday to Maui, and I think you were off the chart there for a couple weeks or so. But but that was after doing a Diana Ross concert, I believe, in Maui. Yeah. And then you just finally did a little decompression.

SPEAKER_02 47:10

The timing just worked out where I could stay for a week or so, and and you know, got a great rate on the hotel through the promoter. And you know, I I um travel a lot for work. Yeah. So when I get to go on a bona fide vacation, I'm very easy to locate. Yeah, I don't need to go sightseeing, I need to be on the beach, under the umbrella, on the lounge, drinking and smoking my cigar. I'm gonna be right here all day. I don't need to go into town and I get to do that as part of my job when I'm in Phoenix or Tokyo. Right. I can go out shopping and sightseeing them, but when I'm on my time, I'm very easy to locate.

SPEAKER_05 47:47

I call my when I go to Hawaii doing nothing.

SPEAKER_02 47:49

Exactly. And a whole bunch of nothing. Yes, yes, yes, yeah. That's why that's that's me on vacation. I want to be in one spot all day. All day. Yeah, man.

SPEAKER_06 48:02

So of all so you've you've had this wide range of of artists, and they all have a very different style of you know, genre of music. You know, you've got your Diana Ross's and Stings and Rod Stewart's and everything. It just just the I mean there's so many more on the list um uh of performers that you've had the had the opportunity to work with. Which which musical style would you say and it could be like earlier on, it could be it could be now, but which one resonates with you the most? Like which one which one is like this this one's in my heart. Like this is this is this is the one that exudes who I am.

SPEAKER_02 48:50

I couldn't pick Justin. You know, once you once you get in the mix of an artist, that becomes your focus. Sure. And that becomes it becomes your obligation to do, you know, do your best on the gig. Um and that's what you're focused on for that time. Um I'd learn I've learned so much from the players and singers in every organization, from the crew guys and girls, just how to how to be on the road. Um uh Rod's former uh production manager, who is still a dear friend of mine, he taught me how to uh funk out my bunk on the bus with some really high-end linen. Okay. So it feels like your bed at home, because we're gonna be on the road for six months. Yeah. So your bed is on this bus and it needs to feel like your bed at home. So you can get in the bed after show and go to sleep. Just things like that. And how to, you know, you're walking around in Tokyo. I'm a black man, I stand out. So you gotta keep your game face on when it's uh appropriate. You know, you don't want to look like you're a fish out of water, but you obviously are. Yeah. Uh, but you know, you learn things like that uh from the crew guys and girls. Just I've been so fortunate I can't say one or the other. Because during the at the time I'm working with them, this is my world right now. And uh yeah, you just want to have fun and uh go around the world, man.

SPEAKER_06 50:17

And it's cool you brought up the you know the crews of these of these of these shows and tours because I I I I I have a friend who who used to do that stuff. And and you would have this whole conversation about like, yeah, you know, the performers, they go up there, they do their thing, they're up there for, you know, two hours and then they're and then they're gone, and then it's it's like nothing. But it's it's the crews that put these shows up, putting them up, absolutely, tearing them down, do it again tomorrow, do it again the next day, yes, and and he's like, I'm not saying that I'm taking anything away from you know the performer that I work with because they're still doing their thing, they're still up there sweating underneath all the lights and everything. Yeah, but the crew without them that show does not happen. That's the truth. Like it is it's and a crew is uh road crews, studio crews, movie crews are widely underappreciated.

SPEAKER_02 51:14

The production doesn't happen without them.

SPEAKER_06 51:15

Exactly.

SPEAKER_02 51:16

It does not happen. Yeah, and and it's a sorry production with the sorry crew. Yeah, it's a sorry production with a sorry band. Yeah, and and those things happen.

SPEAKER_06 51:25

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 51:26

Uh no, but I love my I I ride the bus with the crew. I go out, get off of the band bus and let's go. I'm gonna hang with the crew and we'll stay up. Let me know.

SPEAKER_06 51:34

Yeah, the crew is like the coolest people you could ever meet.

SPEAKER_02 51:37

Exactly. Exactly. Yeah, and the crew guys and girls still party. The band guys and girls are kind of sedate these days for the most part, but you know, in the circles that I run. Yeah, but the crew girls are.

SPEAKER_06 51:49

Most people are reticent nowadays to just kind of like cut loose. Yeah. And we need to bring them to the speakeasy, and then maybe they'll like just be a little bit more content.

SPEAKER_05 51:58

But then we'd have to tell them where it is, and we don't want to do that. Do we want to no, we'll just blindfolds. No, we'll just blindfold them. Oh, yeah, that you blindfold them, blindfold them out. Yeah, yeah. We had to blindfold them out. So so um, so a lot of a lot of uh traveling with Diana Ross, I know, and you you went back and forth a couple times with her. Yeah. And then same thing with Phil. You had you had a big tour with Phil, you took a big break, and then you went on and did another one. Yeah. Maybe two or three, or I can't remember.

SPEAKER_02 52:24

I think we did four tours with Phil. Four from 2001 to 2019. Yeah, four with Phil. I think I did, yeah. Yeah, I was building around the world. I gotta call him because he just, Uncle Phil, if you're listening, congratulations on being inducted into the rock and roll. Oh, yeah, that's yeah, you told me that's that it's about time.

SPEAKER_05 52:44

It's about time. I'm sorry, I'm just gonna use the word stupid. There's some people that should be in that rock and roll hall thing. And Phil Collins is 100% one of them.

SPEAKER_06 52:53

Well, Phil, if you are listening and you want us to deep dive into your life, well, we have a spot open. He just said he might call him. Maybe we can get him to call him a little bit. You want to just be in the room when he calls him? Yeah, you know, I could do a. Can you put him on speaker for us? Just we have a quick question for him.

SPEAKER_05 53:08

You know, I think I could do a half-assed British accent imitation of Phil and pretend like No, I'm not gonna try it right now. I'll have to practice that one.

SPEAKER_02 53:16

No, you don't get to practice every voice. But I am so happy for him. He's he's he's in with Genesis in the circle. Finally, yes, but for him as a solo artist, it's it just happened a couple days ago.

SPEAKER_05 53:30

And and actually, I'd I'd have to look this up. Maybe I don't know if you know this or not, Lamont, but also Peter Gabriel, is he in the rock and roll hall famous Peter Gabriel?

SPEAKER_02 53:38

That's a good question.

SPEAKER_05 53:39

I don't think Gabriel is.

SPEAKER_06 53:41

I don't think Gabriel is.

SPEAKER_02 53:42

Really?

SPEAKER_06 53:43

No, I don't think so. That's crazy, too. I can get our fact checkers to find out.

SPEAKER_05 53:46

Yeah. Well, hey Buzz, what are you doing over there, buddy? He's opening. Oh, he's making he's making your next uh drink for you. Bring it up. I ain't scared of you, Buzz. That's all he focuses on. Buzz just makes his drinks, man. He's just moving around and he's gonna look it up right now. But I I, you know, yeah, God bless Phil Phil Collins. I uh, you know, I've seen him um gosh, did I only see him that one time with you? I think I want to see him, but no, Phil Collins, and the story too that blows my mind is when Genesis broke up, and that could have just been the end of Phil Collins. That could have been the end of it right there. Because Peter Gabriel, and God bless him, you know, a guy's incredibly talented, he just walks away from Genesis. Yeah. So here's all these guys going like, did you find it? I found it.

SPEAKER_06 54:27

Uh Peter Gabriel was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame uh in 2014 as a solo artist. Right. Okay.

SPEAKER_05 54:36

But but okay, that just proves my point. It's like, okay, they were both great in Genesis. They got in the rock and roll hall famous Genesis. And then Peter Gabriel gets it, and then you know, a decade plus later, oh hey, but what about Phil Collins? Yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_06 54:48

Okay, so 2014 was still not a good enough year. That should have been done way before. Way earlier. Correct, correct, correct, correct.

SPEAKER_05 54:57

I agree. But um, yeah, but but um just just real finishing up real quick, and and and you know the story too because you've worked with Phil Collins. The guy's got a voice, it's unbelievable. Indeed. And so they were auditioning people to fill in for Peter Gabriel, and um, and I think I got the story half-ass right, but it's like he goes like raises his hand like, what, Phil? Um, how about me? Yeah, right.

SPEAKER_02 55:22

I heard something about him saying, I'll take a crack at it. I'll take a crack at it.

SPEAKER_05 55:26

It's like yeah, he made Genesis huger. And then is that a word? And then he just said it. And then and then Phil Collins just does his own thing, and of course he, God, how many hits did Phil Collins have?

SPEAKER_02 55:41

And to his credit, is that's one of the few times uh that I'm aware of, and you guys think usually when an artist goes solo, they leave the band that brought them, they jump off the horse that bought them. Phil and Genesis, they didn't do that. A bunch of those guys did solo projects, but they never quit the band. And I thought that was just wise. Yeah, it's just wise. And another uh tidbit uh I've heard about Genesis is they all equally on all of the songs.

SPEAKER_05 56:13

That's nice.

SPEAKER_02 56:15

Even if you bring in a song for the Genesis record, if it's gonna be on this record, we all split it evenly, so there's no big eyes and little us. There's just right, right. And I think that's how they got that longevity, man. Yeah, man. You know, that's how you do it. Yeah, these guys have been together for 50, 50 years.

SPEAKER_06 56:32

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 56:32

You know, that that's no small thing. Whitney Whitney didn't get 50 years. Uh Prince might have got I don't know if Prince got 50 years. 50 years is a long time to be in this game. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. People like Diana Ross, people like Phil Collins, they are uh due some respect for that.

SPEAKER_05 56:52

Um so so throw in some other, give us some other names of of people that you've performed with.

SPEAKER_06 56:58

This is your moment to name drop, man, and everybody goes out.

SPEAKER_05 57:00

Oh, let me let me let me throw one out there real quick. Throw it in. So so um, you know, he calls uh Mr. Van Hook. That's his real name. Mr. Van Hooker. He calls me up one day, and it's like four o'clock in the afternoon. He goes, hey, what are you and Sandra doing tonight? I go, um, I don't know. Why? He goes, Huh, you want to go down and see a concert at the Hollywood Bowl? I'm like, um, what? What is it? And he goes, Well, I'm not gonna tell you, but I'm gonna be there, and if you want to go, I'll have two tickets waiting for you at Will Call. And of course, okay. Go down there, opening act, Stevie Wonder, Mr. Banhook. Sorry, I had to cough there. We don't we don't have a cough button, we gotta have a cough button. Anyway, yeah, no, I'll insist. And I I'm just sitting there, I'm just sitting there looking at my buddy. I'm like, and people are just going like, this is frickin' unbelievable. And the cool part about it was it was like a ch it was um it was like some sort of thing, I forget what it was, a cherry fundraiser or something. And they had they had like, I remember they had Lady Gaga and all these other people. So then, yeah, so then Lamont comes back up into the uh uh where we're sitting there at the Hollywood Bowl, and he's like, What do you think? We're like unbelievable. Um we got a couple minutes left in the segment, so now let's let's kind of go towards the where you're at right now with Lyle Love It.

SPEAKER_02 58:23

I'm in such a beautiful place. It's so interesting, guys. Uh as I grow older and wiser and as I make new decisions for my life, it is amazing to see how things fall in line. So uh this is 2026, I think 2018-ish, I decided I wanted to be a country artist and really didn't understand what that meant. But you know, I've been rocking, listening to country music for 40 years, and um it's always been near and dear to me. Um I started a couple of records and didn't finish them because I just wasn't excited about it. But when the country idea came up, it was just very special. I'm saying that to say this Lyo Love It situation came out of almost nowhere. I'd done one of Lyo's records, I think, but never we had I hadn't worked live with him. And uh got the call to do that gig, and we took care of the business and finding myself on his stage with his band of beasts on their instrument once again required me to do my homework and show up with my best, and or else just be a slacker on stage. Um so just being in that I don't call Lyle country or I call him country adjacent. Yeah. Um, but that's and that's where my record is. I I call myself country adjacent. My record is not traditional country, but it's still got that country hump with the with the bit of who else I am besides country. Right. So I'm just grateful to be able to uh make my own decisions and and watch things come together. It's been it's still being a good ride. It's still being a good ride. Very, very grateful.

SPEAKER_06 1:00:16

I remember I remember growing up and because my parents listened to a lot of country and I had seen Low Love It and I was like his like music videos and stuff. Yeah. And I was like, man, this dude has no emotion on his face whatsoever. He doesn't do anything with it, he just plays and does, and then that's it. Yeah. There's no like, do you feel do you feel what you were playing? Obviously grown up now, and now I'm in my 40s, and I'm like, he absolutely did, because you learn about how everyone's prowess is growing up when you're a kid, you don't really you're not really looking at any of that stuff. It's not hitting you like that. But now it's like you're seeing him like, oh, I get it now. Yes. And now I'm like, all right, respect Lyle.

SPEAKER_02 1:01:06

Yeah. And he has a dry wit, but he is hilarious. And he wouldn't think that looking at us. He wouldn't think that looked like a lot of things. But he is hilarious. And he uh he talks more on stage than any other artist I've ever worked with. Uh which, you know, Garth Brooks. I'm not working with Garth, but I did see Garth. Garth talks a lot. He didn't talk about it. Shut up, sing songs. Well, that's that that was the common uh uh deal. You know, get as many songs in as you can. Right. So to be on this cat's gig and hear him, his show is over two hours, and in any given show, he might talk for 30 minutes. Yeah. Which is a lot. Yeah. But the audience is on baited breath, waiting to hear this story that he's gonna tell about his life and his family and being on the road and and what have you, and that's been uh another big lesson when I when I do my shows. Now I talk to the to the audience. Yeah. And just and that is important to do that. Yes. Yeah. But I really thought there was to overdo it maybe was a no-no, but now I'm like, people want to know about your real life too. Yeah. So, you know, like I said, I'm I've been learning, I'm still soaking it up.

SPEAKER_06 1:02:23

It's it's cool you mentioned that too, because there's I I listen to a lot of uh like rock bands and everything. And uh one one band that I went to, uh, they're called Taking Back Sunday. And uh, you know, small little venue, everybody's packed in there. Um, but the lead singer uh when we went to this show, you know how they always go like, oh, you know, how's everybody doing? You know, everybody's all like oh we're doing great. He's talking to me. Yeah, you know, and them doing that thing, and then he's like, Oh, you know, you know, how are you doing? And then everybody's all like, ah, great. He's like, Oh no, no, no, no, stop, stop, stop. I'm talking oops, I'm talking to this person right here. I want to get I wanna know how they I want to know how they're doing. Yeah, I'm gonna get to you. And then and then the next couple songs will go, I'm like, all right, I'm gonna go over here. Yeah. How are you doing? Where are you where are you coming from? Yeah, and directly talking to people, it it opens up a little bit more of a show, yeah, I think to for everybody. Like you're you're not just going there to just listen to music now. Now you're getting there to like actually get like a personal experience potentially. Like, I think that's cool.

SPEAKER_02 1:03:24

It is cool. I think that's cool. It's very cool. It's very cool. And and I'm mindful in uh bigger venues in in and big arenas and stadiums, I'm mindful to spend some time playing with the people in the nosebleed seats. Because they're still in the building and they spent their money to be here too, but they're you know, depending on the size of the venue, they can be far away. But it's important to acknowledge them too and bring them into the party.

SPEAKER_06 1:03:52

Now, before um we take a another segment break here, um I went through and looked up some stuff about you. Oh boy. Uh you know, I and I and I looked and I looked up some I looked up some you know some photos that you have over the over the years. Oh boy again. Um so I just picked a random one. Uh-huh. I'm gonna show you this picture. I'll put it up on the socials when we post this when we post this episode so everybody can see the photo. I'm so afraid of it. Um I just picked up a random photo. Okay. I'm gonna show it to you, and I just want you to explain. This photo. Explain the photo, what's going on, where you at, who the people are, what what what what time this was, just a random photo. I have no prior knowledge to this photo. Okay. You you would you admit that we did not discuss this? No, we did not. No, we did not. Okay, so I'm just gonna show you this photo. Okay, and you're just gonna give me a little little background on it. So here's the here's the picture right here.

SPEAKER_02 1:04:47

Ah, that is in Nashville, Tennessee. Okay. And if you show me that again, I can tell you who's in it. So I'm on the far left. Next to me is Amy Keys. Um next to Amy is uh Brad Cole, next to Brad is Leland Sklar, and next to Leland is Daryl Sturmer. And all five of us were in Phil Collins band together. There it is. But this is at a Lyle Lovitt show uh backstage. So Brad and Daryl, uh Brad and Daryl came to see me and Amy and Lee. Okay. Uh uh to a Lyle Lovitt show in Nashville. Yeah, those are my guys.

SPEAKER_05 1:05:28

Before we wrap, uh Lamont came into the speakeasy, you know. We we let him into the speakeasy, you know, even outside of these podcasts. He's a cool dude. You still blindfold him? So he doesn't know. He knows where it is now. I have my own chair. He's got his own chair, he's got his. I thought you were gonna say you have your own key. Let's go. Okay. He's got his own top secret code to sneak in here anytime we're not here. All right. And he shows we're all he's all excited. He goes, Look at this picture. Look at this picture. And this picture of about 30, 40 people. And there's Lamont sitting there. And he and I'm looking at the picture, I'm like, I'm gonna come. Us. Holy shit.

SPEAKER_02 1:06:02

That's I'm trying to think of what picture. Okay. One of the Beatles, maybe? Like Ah. I finally met a Beatle. I met Paul McCartney. There it is. I I couldn't believe it.

SPEAKER_05 1:06:13

I'm like, that's freaking Paul McCartney. Sir, I'm sorry. Sir Paul McCartney.

SPEAKER_02 1:06:17

Sir, yeah, yeah. Sir Paul. Yes. And did you you got to talk to him a little bit? I got to talk to him. And during my brief exchange with him, I know what I was saying, but in my mind, I was saying, ooh, stop talking before you say something stupid. Stop talking. Stop talking. But what I wanted to explain to him, that I wanted to explain to him for years is we have we share the same birthday. Oh so I got to say, Sir Paul, I I do my birthday. And one of my life missions is to do my birthday with you. And he got a good he got a good laugh. So I'm still putting that out there, man. We got to do June 18th together. You never know. Sooner than later.

SPEAKER_05 1:06:58

Maybe Paul's listening. Yeah. You never know. That would be lovely.

SPEAKER_02 1:07:01

But he was lovely. He was lovely. And and the way that that happened, I was rehearsing with another band, and the musical director, Greg Filling, said, uh guys, let's take a break. One of my friends is here and I want to introduce you guys. So we put our instruments down and we're walking in the parking lot, and we got like, you know, a hundred feet away, and I could say I was like, that is Paul McCartney. He's really just walking us up to meet Sir Paul. It was pretty, pretty cool. That's incredible. Pretty cool. Incredible for me too. It's not lost on me, Justin. It is not. The the people that I've gotten to meet and the spaces that I've gotten to be in is pretty pretty cool for a little black boy from Oakland. Oh yeah. Hell yeah. Yes.

SPEAKER_00 1:07:49

I'm grateful.

SPEAKER_02 1:07:49

All right.

SPEAKER_05 1:07:50

Great way to end the segment.

SPEAKER_06 1:07:51

We are gonna we're gonna wrap this segment up with a with a nice little shiny bow here. And when we come back, uh we got our last call coming up, and we got a couple other things to to discuss before we send Lamont off on the road again. We will be right back, Deep Divers. Hey Deep Divers. For fourteen years, Bravery Brewing Company has been a cornerstone of the Antelope Valley, serving up award-winning beer alongside some seriously craveworthy eats. From handcrafted pizzas to chicken wings and giant soft pretzels paired with irresistible dipping sauces. There's something for everyone. Kickback and enjoy the laid-back atmosphere. Whether you're hosting a company party, celebrating a birthday, or gathering with fellow baseball fans to catch a Dodgers game on the brand new big screen TVs out on the back patio. The Bravery Brewing Company isn't just a brewery, it's the place to be. For more information, visit Braverybrewing.com.

SPEAKER_05 1:09:10

Are we the dive masters? Do we decide will we have an official name or something?

SPEAKER_06 1:09:14

We haven't given ourselves a name yet. They are our deep divers.

SPEAKER_05 1:09:21

By the way, before we start. Buzz. Yeah. Lamont needs another uh what are you drinking?

SPEAKER_02 1:09:27

You're drinking that bravery brewing uh Buster's Brown. I'm drinking Busters Brown Hell, baby. Yeah, and uh Buzz, I'm gonna need uh uh a two uh in a chilled mug, please. Thank you, Buzz.

SPEAKER_05 1:09:41

To get through this last segment. So um one of the things that I am most proud of of my friend Lam Mr. Lamont Van Hoek is his ability to write, create amazing, amazing songs. And I had the distinct honor to literally go over to his house, go to he's got a nice studio there, and literally watch him put this album together. And uh so we're gonna the next uh big part of this segment is gonna be all about this album that you released. Yeah, and with that said, go for it.

SPEAKER_02 1:10:18

Yeah, I am so grateful, you guys. Uh my first full project under my name. Uh yeah, I'm really excited and grateful.

SPEAKER_04 1:10:28

But Buzz is trying to clap, but he was kind of weird. That was funny though, Buzz.

SPEAKER_02 1:10:34

I feel the love, Buzz. Yeah, we love you, Buzz.

SPEAKER_06 1:10:36

A bunch of knuckles hitting each other.

SPEAKER_02 1:10:39

Uh I did a country record, y'all. And uh as we were alluding to before, I've had uh different producers and directors and different people ask me, would I consider changing my name? And the answer has always been no, emphatically. But uh so I decided to get people used to saying my name with the title of my record. So I titled my record My Name is Lamont Van Hook. Love it just to get people saying it. Love it. And uh yeah, yeah, this record is still plugging along. I thought uh with my resume, I did think it would be a lot easier to get some attention. Uh, but I'm cool with paying some more dues because I'm not stopping. Yeah. So I'm already writing for the next one, and we still got a couple of singles to pull off of this one. So some good things are in store, you guys. So uh follow me on the socials, Lamont Van Hook on Instagram and TikTok now and YouTube and Facebook, and I'm probably leaving something out because socials aren't my thing, you guys. I'm trying to post more. Even though it's not Twitter.

SPEAKER_06 1:11:43

I refuse to call it X. It's Twitter. It always will be Twitter.

SPEAKER_02 1:11:47

A tweet. Yes, a tweet. Uh I don't X. Yes, exactly. That's stupid. Exactly. A tweet. But I am uh grateful. Yeah, check out this record and and uh hit me up at uh my email. I guess I'm gonna do that. Lamont at Lamontvanhook.com. Hit me up, and I will do my best to hit you back. But please, please, and thank you for listening.

SPEAKER_05 1:12:07

Well, I I think we should talk a little bit more about it because this is a big deal, man. I've listened I've listened to every song on that album.

SPEAKER_06 1:12:13

And you can and I haven't gotten to listen to any of it yet. So I yeah, I I'm I'm I'm green into this, so I'm gonna be able to listen to some stuff. Yeah, so yeah, that's it.

SPEAKER_05 1:12:23

Yeah, and he and and occasionally uh, and it's a it's a really sweet thing, keep your eyes out for this. Lamont will go down and perform at one of the greatest places in LA to perform the baked potato. Iconic, yeah. Iconic. It's iconic. It's like the people that have been there, it's like it's a very what 50, 60 people get in there, 70?

SPEAKER_02 1:12:45

I think it's 98.

SPEAKER_05 1:12:46

98 if I am not mistaken. But yeah, but in that front area there, it's not very big. But anyway, you go down there and you get a nice baked potato. It's like the size of a freaking football or something, man. It's like crazy. Yeah, but um it's it's intimate, and Lamont just you know, he basically just says hi to everybody and hugs everybody. But you know, you've gone down there a few times and and played many songs off that album and with with some of the greatest performers of all time that that back you up, which is crazy.

SPEAKER_02 1:13:16

My friends.

SPEAKER_05 1:13:17

But um if if if you're loving this podcast, um make a little investment and and and and buy his by his record, man, it's like freaking it's it's special. And the songs, and I remember we're sitting in your backyard and you're playing these songs, and I'm I'm kind of a big hook uh guy that's uh about hooky music, you know. And every song that he wrote on that song, which he wrote them all, uh except for the one, which is kind of special too. I wrote nine out of eleven. Okay, I'm sorry, nine out of eleven. Uh-huh. Yeah, Wichita Lyman's on there, and he does a version of headband, but is ahead. Yeah. But no, every song that the nine songs that he wrote on that on that album or record or whatever you call it these days, it's they don't have them anymore, unfortunately. Those are the good old days.

SPEAKER_00 1:14:05

Do they still call them LPs? You rarely hear that.

SPEAKER_06 1:14:09

I see, I grew up in the in the era of LPs. Me too. And owls.

SPEAKER_02 1:14:13

And you you I will still hear somebody still hear someone say it, you know, I I just bought a new album, I got a new album out. Mostly I hear people say project now. Yeah. Because I was saying CD, but every I'm a dinosaur, I still buy CDs.

SPEAKER_06 1:14:26

Listen to that new download?

SPEAKER_02 1:14:28

Because that's that's all music is now. That's today. That's today. Yeah, it's a download. Yeah. Yeah, you don't get to hold anything and see the cover artwork and see the credits that now the kids just downloads. Yeah. I wanted to see who made this music thing.

SPEAKER_06 1:14:43

That was my favorite thing of buying like CDs. I go like you know, warehouse and all that stuff, and open up the thing and I pulled a little sheet out and opened it up and like read the stuff, read the lyrics and all that stuff, and like it was damn. Yeah, those days are gone. Yeah. Those days are gone.

SPEAKER_02 1:15:00

It's it's different. Yeah, we did we did a lot with this record. We got a big uh booklet that you can pull out and unfold. Uh, but the lyrics we're so in much information just for the credits uh that the lyrics we did print them, but you gotta go on my website, LamontBanhook.com, to see the lyrics and check them out because I think they're good good words.

SPEAKER_06 1:15:23

And you still gotta call Phil to see if he'll come and do a song with you on the next album.

SPEAKER_02 1:15:27

I'm gonna call him uh shortly. Oh yeah.

SPEAKER_05 1:15:30

You know what's really cool too, and and I'm pretty sure I got this right. So when he put his website up, on the website, he's got a little um thing that um Phil put on there. Yeah. Just to show the love, basically.

SPEAKER_02 1:15:47

And that's what it was. I I reached out to him uh and asked him, would he I reached out to a couple of people and asked them would they give me a couple of lines of quotes that I could use on my socials. And Phil was the first one, he hit me back the next day, and and he was the only one that hit me back out of the few people that I reached out to. And he asked me to give him 24 hours.

SPEAKER_05 1:16:15

And when he's I thought you were gonna say he was asking asking for 24 bucks.

SPEAKER_02 1:16:22

I can't do this for free. Okay. Yeah, I'm sorry. I'd have gone for it. I'd have gone for it. Uh but just that kind of love, and he did not write a line or two, he wrote a couple paragraphs that we still haven't used everything, just gushing. Really made me feel so yeah, loved and appreciated.

SPEAKER_05 1:16:39

You know, just think about that. He's he let he sat down in front of a computer and wrote that and and put a lot of thought into it. That was before AI. Yeah. So he actually wrote it. He actually did it, yes. But no, I've read that. I read that and I was like blown away. It's like Phil too Phil loves Lamont, man.

SPEAKER_02 1:16:55

And I love him back, and he knows it, and I know he loves me. And and I, you know, Fred White again uh has taught me so much. That's a quote from Fred.

SPEAKER_05 1:17:04

Is that Phil calling us right now? Wait, is he listening? No, it's not live. Sorry.

SPEAKER_02 1:17:08

Fred taught me that love is an action word. You don't just say I love you, and and that's it. Then you you show some sign somehow. And yeah, and he's absolutely done that. Did Fred did Fred sing on the album at all? Absolutely. Oh, yeah.

SPEAKER_05 1:17:22

Fred's all over this record. And and I know uh at least one of the Perry sisters is on there. Uh Lori's on it, and Carolyn is on it. Nice. Uh and uh is Leland on there a little bit? Leland's being on Wheels Online.

SPEAKER_02 1:17:34

I'm sorry. That is great. Uh the engineers, Eric Zoller mixed most of this record. Uh Mick Guzowski, who's done so many other hit records. Yeah. Uh uh Rob, what's Rob's Oh, Don't Kill Me, Rob, in Nashville. Uh he mixed two songs for me. I can't think of your last name, Rob, but thank you. My record, I tell people, I whether you if you like the record, great. If you don't like the record, it's still all my fault. Because I got the record I wanted. You'll like trust me, listeners, what I intended.

SPEAKER_05 1:18:08

You will like the record. You will like you will love the record. I hope so. There's there's there's so many, there's so many great songs on that, on that. And uh so many great moments.

SPEAKER_02 1:18:17

Yeah, exactly. And these are all just my friends that helped me make this record.

SPEAKER_05 1:18:28

And unlike Justin, who just sang a little bit on the uh last segment, I believe, uh Lamont's not gonna sing. That's fine. But if you want to hear him sing, you go on, you go on to Lamontvanhoek.com. That's right, and you purchase that and you listen to it, and you throw it in the car, and yeah, you're driving somewhere and you're listening to that and you just can feel happy. Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 1:18:46

That's that's the whole point. Exactly. Spotify, it's uh Apple Music, it's all of the places you can find it.

SPEAKER_06 1:18:56

Yeah. Have you or or will you? I don't I don't know if you have or or haven't. I didn't see that anywhere. Um perform out here. Like perform a live show out here. Uh for the home for the home crew down here.

SPEAKER_02 1:19:10

I don't think I've done anything like in the Antelope Valley. Okay. I would love to play LPAC.

SPEAKER_06 1:19:17

That's where I would think like everybody would want to at least perform once. Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 1:19:21

It's just LPAC. I've been to a couple shows there, and some of the artists I've worked with have played there just not when I was in the band. Just didn't happen. I would love to do a show at home, and I could be leave the gig and be in my own bed in 15 minutes. Are you kidding me? That's unheard of.

SPEAKER_05 1:19:37

And and Buzz could get you some Busters Brown, probably too.

SPEAKER_02 1:19:40

Yeah, waiting at the door when I get home. Hit me, Buzz.

SPEAKER_06 1:19:44

Better than on the stage while you're singing. I'm cool with that. Just constantly refreshed with Busters Brown.

SPEAKER_01 1:19:51

On stage, I call it medicine. There it is. I need medicine, somebody.

SPEAKER_05 1:19:55

Medicine me. I think before we get into the favorite, my favorite part of the podcast, where we ask our guests to give us five very interesting facts about their lives that a lot of people don't know. We're gonna hit that in a second, but it just popped in my head. What was the biggest crowd you ever performed in front of? That's a good one. Can you remember that?

SPEAKER_02 1:20:17

Yes, I'll never forget it. That was Rod Stewart days. We did uh Rio, Rocking in Rio, 98, New Year's Eve 98, going into 99. And we were in the Guinness Book of World Records at that time for the most people at a concert was over a million people.

SPEAKER_06 1:20:36

And I think when I was looking at pictures, I think I had the picture of you standing in that. I think that was on one of them. Okay, maybe. But I think that might have been the one that you're talking about. That's crazy.

SPEAKER_02 1:20:51

Up and down the beach, uh Copacabana beach and out in the water on their boats. It was crazy. A million. It was crazy. A million people. Wow. Yeah, just up and you know, they had big uh screens and and uh audio speakers set up and down the beach so that people could hear and enjoy the show. But at that time, that was the biggest concert ever.

SPEAKER_05 1:21:13

Wow.

SPEAKER_02 1:21:13

That's in South America.

SPEAKER_05 1:21:15

I mean, you know, people do 50,000 seats. And that's a lot of people. Right. And they're like, I don't know, is that that's Phil Collins.

SPEAKER_02 1:21:24

That's Phil Collins. That's a Phil Collins stage. Okay. Can't remember what stadiums were at massive. That was massive. It was massive. Phil played stadiums. It was, you know. Yeah, we played some we played. We played uh Phil played some 90,000 seat stadiums for multiple nights.

SPEAKER_05 1:21:43

I think we have time for this. I there's one of the cool this is one of the coolest Lamont Van Hoek stories in my mind. There's so many of them. So many of them. So I think it was the Hollywood Bowl. So he would get there, do soundcheck, and then he would go in the worst seats all the way in the back. Well, there's no bad seat in the Hollywood Bowl, but okay, you know, people are in the way in the back. You know what we you know where I'm going with this, right? And you would have access to what a two seats like almost up front.

SPEAKER_01 1:22:12

Pretty close.

SPEAKER_05 1:22:12

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 1:22:13

Yeah.

SPEAKER_05 1:22:13

Tell the story. You you would go up in the back and you just say hi to you, and they didn't know who you were. You're just like some guy walking around like I I like to people watch. Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 1:22:22

And once the house doors open, uh, I just walk around. You know, put my pass under my shirt. I'm just another Joe walking around, and I love hearing people talk about whomever they're here to see. Let's say it's Rod. You know, uh just overhear people talking about their favorite Rod Stewart song, or the first time they saw him, or the last time they saw him, what he was wearing, and how much fun they had. So I I go over to the ball. Anything. And just people are talking, anticipating the show. I would walk around in the nosebleed seats, you know, they would the uh production would give everybody in the band two tickets for each show. And if I didn't have guests, I would get my two tickets in hand and go up to the nosebleeds and invite somebody to come. You want to come sit down on the floor? That's awesome. You know, and most people would be so excited. There were a few times where people were like, Who are you? And these tickets are not real, and why would you do that? Have me pack up all my stuff to walk down there that's not a real seat.

SPEAKER_05 1:23:20

Worst case scenario, they're gonna go back to the nosebleed seats, right? If you're BSing them. Yes, but you weren't. Yes, yes. And then they're you just make their day.

SPEAKER_01 1:23:27

Yes. And when I, you know, when they see you on stage and go, oh shit. Exactly. He was real.

SPEAKER_00 1:23:35

Yeah, we'll take them. We'll take them now. Yes, exactly.

SPEAKER_05 1:23:39

And then after that, after those people going to these concerts, they're like, Where's Lamont Fen looking at? I'm looking for him, man.

SPEAKER_02 1:23:45

I want to go to the front. Yes, yes. But that's always uh a joy, you know, when you see some people that you're able to uh like that, they really enjoy the show. Oh, that's great. Yeah, because they have a little, you know, a little extra connection or whatever.

SPEAKER_05 1:23:59

Okay, so here's where I don't think we're gonna embarrass you, but we're gonna do the top. So we ask you uh to send us the five interesting facts about your life that a lot of people and and I've read all these, and there's a couple that are just I can't wait for the birthday cake. Oh, very real. That's very real.

SPEAKER_06 1:24:17

So I think Justin's gonna start us off with the first one. Okay, so I got the so I got the first one. So uh it just simply says gun accident. Yes, it does. So you're going to need to explain in some detail here about what gun accident means. Because that could go a few different ways.

SPEAKER_02 1:24:35

It could. Uh what had happened was I was three years old, you guys. Three, oh my god. This is not starting off well. Yeah. It gets better, but this is not starting off well. Yeah.

SPEAKER_06 1:24:49

Three years old and gunning.

SPEAKER_02 1:24:50

Uh, me and my mom were living with her dad, my grandfather at the time, and he was an avid hunter, and he had his shotgun in the corner like it was a broom. And I was told on no uncertain terms, 1,000 times never to touch it. Um, but this particular day I was watching, sitting in my mother's lap, watching a movie, and my mother told me recently, within the last maybe five years or so, that this was actually Halloween, which I never put that together. But I got up out of her uh lap to go to the bathroom, and on the way to the bathroom, I saw this gun and decided to touch it. And I put my index finger on my right hand over the barrel, and I put my and I pulled the trigger with the index finger on my left hand. And the chaos that ensued, I remember it so well. My mother came screaming and running, she looked like a cartoon, like her hair was just, it was crazy. Um But anyway, I found my grandfather's shotgun when I'm when I was three and shot the top digit of my right index finger off. Um my mom says that as tragic as it was, if it had to happen, as good it happened then as a three-year-old, because I hadn't started using my hands yet to write or play or anything. So since I've been using my hands, my hand has been like it is. Um But I also what it affords me is to tell kids about gun safety. Yeah. Because kids being little, my hand is at their eye level. Yeah. The adults in my life, uh I have to tell them or they'll notice after they've known me for years. What in the world? What's going on with your hand? I was like, oops, I had an accident with a gun when I was a kid, but the kids see it right away. And I get to tell them, you know, uh, if you ever see a gun, don't touch it. Yeah. Go find one of your parents or go find an adult, or or uh, do you want a finger like mine? And the answer is always no. Well, that's great. I didn't want it either, but don't touch. I get to tell kids about gun safety. And if there's a lot of kids at an event, a family event or a party or something, inevitably the the one kid I told about my finger will come back with three or four kids in in tow. Right. Can you show them your finger? Can they touch it? Does it hurt? And I'm like, we could do all of that if you understand that if you see a gun, you're not to touch it. Yeah. You are to go the other way. Yeah. Unless you want one of these like me. And yeah. And I'm I'm grateful to be able to do that part. There you go. Because it was traumatic, but I'm still here.

SPEAKER_00 1:27:24

There it is.

SPEAKER_02 1:27:24

I'm still here.

SPEAKER_00 1:27:26

Just a finger.

SPEAKER_05 1:27:26

Yeah. As Justin and I are sitting here looking at your uh right index finger, missing about I wasn't looking. I would say about 1.75 inches is gone. How do you play the piano like that?

SPEAKER_02 1:27:39

It's interesting. The uh professor that got me into the music department at Howard, he asked me the same qu he he I was playing something for him. I was playing something, and he said, Oh my god, do you play with your finger? And I was, you know, smart mouth kid. And I looked right at him and said, Do you play with your finger? And and To his credit, instead of treating me like I was being a little asshole, he said, You know what, young man, I'm gonna get you in my program. And the rest is history at Howard, because he stayed in my corner through my four years there and uh took care of me.

SPEAKER_06 1:28:15

If you would have said that to JK Simmons and Whiplash, he would have thrown a tray at you. Exactly. Exactly. He'd have thrown a chair at you, man. Exactly. Yes, indeed.

SPEAKER_05 1:28:25

What a great film. Okay, so number number two, and and I know, I know, I think I know about this, but you you tell us you're an avid cook and an avid baker. Oh yeah. Tell us about that, man.

SPEAKER_02 1:28:38

Food porn is my addiction. I can watch Martha Stewart. This is a safe place you can talk. Okay. I could watch Martha Stewart. I could watch America's Test Kitchen. I can watch the Great British Baking Show like all day. Like all day. And I do from time to time. I love, I live by myself, so if I want to eat, I gotta cook. And I come from a family of great cooks and bakers. So you know, cakes and pies and puddings and cookies. I love, love, love. And I just got a new toy. I just bought my dream mixer. So I just spent I'm gonna make some bread in the next couple days. There you go. And uh yeah, put this thing through its paces. Cause the new, the new KitchenAid has a half speed for folding. So you don't have to put it all the way to one. You can put it to half. Love it. Yeah, but I love, yeah, I love being in the kitchen. That's cool, man.

SPEAKER_06 1:29:32

Ramsey or nah? Say it again.

SPEAKER_00 1:29:34

Ramsey or nah. Because a lot of people are love hate with him.

SPEAKER_06 1:29:38

Nah.

SPEAKER_00 1:29:38

Nah. Okay. That's it. I don't like mean.

SPEAKER_02 1:29:40

I like it in the kids. I don't, I don't like, I don't like the way you see these reality shows in wrestling. He's cheeky mean though.

SPEAKER_06 1:29:46

I don't think he was really like mean like that.

SPEAKER_02 1:29:48

I need my food to be prepared with love. I need some love on this though.

SPEAKER_06 1:29:53

Yeah. Um so next one I have here is uh your your guilt your guilty pleasure is as aforementioned birthday cake. Uh it says here that you say it is a food group and that you will eat it year-round. Please delve into that a little bit. Because I I tell I tell my wife all the time because I love cake, uh-huh, and that's one of the main reasons why I got married. Okay. Is cake.

SPEAKER_02 1:30:21

Yes. Your wedding cake was the bomb.

SPEAKER_06 1:30:23

Yeah, a lot of people around, because I know my wife, and she thinks it's funny, but other people here they're like, that's not funny. That's fine. I get it. I think it's funny. I get it.

SPEAKER_02 1:30:31

I can relate. I don't know what it is. The buttercream frosting with all the flowers and piping. I love birthday cakes.

SPEAKER_06 1:30:39

So, I mean, we're talking like you're going into a store, like you're going into like an Alberts and the Stater Brothers of Costco, you're you're getting a birthday cake. Yes. Yes. Are you having them like write messages on it? Not all the time, but sometimes. And then you're just, and then you just go home and you just eat the birthday cake.

SPEAKER_02 1:30:55

For a couple days. Yeah. And some ice cream. Yeah. I'm working on one right now, the honest truth. Okay. I'm working on one right now.

SPEAKER_05 1:31:03

I just go out on a loom and say we're never going to have a guest that ever comes up with that one.

SPEAKER_00 1:31:11

I love no, that's a that's that's no.

SPEAKER_02 1:31:13

I buy birthday cake all year. Uh okay, that's pretty freaking. Celebrating it every year.

SPEAKER_05 1:31:19

There you go. Okay. There you go. So I the next one, um, I'm with you on this, brother.

SPEAKER_02 1:31:25

Uh-huh.

SPEAKER_05 1:31:26

I do not Lamont Van Hook does not like scary movies. I do.

SPEAKER_02 1:31:31

I used to love Dracula and Frankenstein. Now I have nightmares for nights. Okay. So I don't even mess around. There's some new movies that I understand are really great, but if it's on the verge of being a scary movie, I won't see it because I know it's it stays with me.

SPEAKER_06 1:31:49

So I used to work at Halloween Horror Nights, so now I know to not ever invite you to that. Okay. Free ticket and everything, just still a still a naw. Okay.

SPEAKER_00 1:32:00

Hard naw. I'm hard naw.

SPEAKER_02 1:32:02

I'm scary anyway, and that yeah, that would take a little bit.

SPEAKER_05 1:32:05

Hey, Buzz, do you like scary movies? He's like shaking his head. No, he doesn't like me either, man. Okay. But you like scary movies, Justin? Oh, yeah. Uh I I used to like scary movies, but it was one of my favorite genres. I get nightmares too, man. It's like I don't want to watch scary movies.

SPEAKER_06 1:32:20

I mean, yeah, it it'll mess with you, but that's kind of the point. It's supposed to make you like afraid of life a little bit. Like one of my like one that messes with messed with me was not the newest version of it, but it's called The Strangers. Yeah. And that's real. I like that. The real stuff that can happen to you, not the supernatural, crazy stuff that happens. That no, I don't yeah, that that that still messes with me. But like a Chuck E doll walking around, I'm good. I know because I know that can't happen. I know it can't happen, though. It's not real.

SPEAKER_05 1:32:54

Speaking of Chucky, I gotta just tell you real quick. I'm sure my son Brian's gonna listen to this podcast, and uh oh my god, he used to like freak out about the Chuck E Doll thing, man. Me too. Me too. Yeah, I mean you're a cute, I guess. I think he's still I think he still wigs out if he sees a Chucky thing.

SPEAKER_01 1:33:08

Yeah, I would.

SPEAKER_05 1:33:09

Okay. I would. That's a good one, man. Thanks for sharing that. Yeah, I'm not a horror movie guy.

SPEAKER_06 1:33:14

You gave me a little idea about Brian now. Um so next one I have here is that uh that you have a large collection of manual and power tools.

SPEAKER_02 1:33:24

Yeah, you know, for some reason, Justin, my circle, like my family, some of my family too, they don't believe I can fix stuff. Okay. And I like fixing stuff. My dad, uh, and my stepdad, as a matter of fact, were both very, they were both mechanics, and my dad is still here, my stepdad passed. But they're both mechanics and both very handy, and my dad, both of them would make me help them. You know, I wanted to play my piano and listen to my records, and that could have been my life. But they were like, You're gonna help me put in the brakes on this car, you're gonna help me build a wall for this new house edition, you're gonna help me with plumbing, you're gonna help me with some lightweight electrical. So those things that I really, really, really did not want to learn have served me quite well. And I literally have a garage full of tools that I use.

SPEAKER_06 1:34:17

What's the what's the one thing that you have fixed that you're the most proud of?

SPEAKER_02 1:34:22

Oh, probably my hardwood floors downstairs in my house. Okay. Friend of mine, this uh flooring contractor, uh, he and his wife flew out to help me and and teach me how to install hardwood floors.

SPEAKER_06 1:34:34

It wasn't like a moment where like you like you had carpet and then you ripped it up. I'm like, oh my god, I have hardwood floors.

SPEAKER_02 1:34:39

No, you put I had carpet and and and downstairs, and when I pulled the carpet up, it was a slab. There you go. So yeah, we we put the carp we put the hardwood slopes.

SPEAKER_06 1:34:50

I've been there. It's beautiful, man. That was funny.

SPEAKER_02 1:34:53

Yeah. Yeah. You know, uh yeah. I he Joe helped me, Joe Lang. Hey Joe, if you and Jerry are listening. Um he helped me do the uh living room, dining room in my house is one long room. Okay, and and he helped me do that, and then I did the family room pretty much by myself once he showed me what to do.

SPEAKER_05 1:35:11

If we ever get Diana Ross in here, I'm gonna ask her if she ever put down a hardware floor in her life.

SPEAKER_06 1:35:15

No, she'll she'll she'll be on her. Okay. We'll get her. Sorry, now comes our our favorite part of the show. This is the wrap up.

SPEAKER_05 1:35:22

This is this is the wrap-up for uh our our podcast tonight, and it's called we call it last call. Okay. By the way, oh last call speaking of that. Hey, Buzz. Yeah, hit me one month. No, he just said that's it. It's last call. We can't get another drink.

SPEAKER_06 1:35:35

He's following the rules, man, that you gave dude.

SPEAKER_05 1:35:37

Oh man.

SPEAKER_06 1:35:38

No, it's not gonna do it.

SPEAKER_05 1:35:39

All right, I guess. He's not gonna do it. Last call. All right.

SPEAKER_06 1:35:42

So we'll get you your tab after.

SPEAKER_05 1:35:45

Thank you. We'll get it figured out. So that we we go back and forth on this one. So um, what is Mr. Van Hook, my buddy Lamont, what is your go-to cocktail?

SPEAKER_02 1:35:56

Cocktail. Cocktail is a mixed drink. Yes. Uh, if I have to have a mixed drink, we'll do it lat last like last night, you know, maybe vodka crane. But if I'm having booze, I I've been a cognac drinker for years, but I'm learning whiskey now. And Scotch, because of you, you turned me on a Scotch Bart. I wasn't a Scotch guy, but you know, now some Balvinny or uh Lafroig or Glenn Fiddletz, I'm like, I'm here.

SPEAKER_05 1:36:24

Neat or on the rocks. Neat. Neat, yeah. Neat.

SPEAKER_02 1:36:27

Or the uh metal ice cubes that don't water down. It doesn't water it down, yeah. No, no.

SPEAKER_05 1:36:32

You get an expensive whiskey, you don't want to like water it down.

SPEAKER_02 1:36:35

Put an ice cube in it.

SPEAKER_06 1:36:37

People do.

SPEAKER_02 1:36:37

Oh, absolutely.

SPEAKER_06 1:36:38

But I yeah, I don't I want to taste the booze. And just wait until you get to a point where you have your own scotch called Lamont.

SPEAKER_02 1:36:44

Hey, how about it? How about it, friend?

SPEAKER_06 1:36:46

Yes, like a like a 12-year Lamont? Yes. Um, man. You never know. Um your favorite sport to watch on TV.

SPEAKER_02 1:36:57

Ooh, it has changed with the Olympics. You know, I could watch curling. Olympics are fun to watch. I could watch uh hanging out with Bart and a couple of my other friends. I could watch golf now because I understand it. Um, you know, I grew up watching football, baseball, and basketball, and that's still fun, and boxing, you know, when Ollie and Fraser, Ken Norton, when all that was going on. Yeah. Uh, but again, that was really my brother's and my dad's bonding moment. You know, I used to know all the players because that's what you did back then when I was a kid, but I would rather see Gladys Knight. I really would. I really would than Reggie. Watching the Super Bowl for the halftime show. Yes. That's me. I mean, that's which is fine. That's me. Which is fine. Yes. I w I know who's playing the game, but I don't know how they got there. The playoffs, I have no idea. But I will watch the halftime show.

SPEAKER_06 1:37:46

He shows up to the halftime show, watches it at the bar, and then leaves. Yes. And watch the commercials.

SPEAKER_00 1:37:52

I love it. Yeah. I love it.

SPEAKER_05 1:37:54

Next question. This this one takes a little thought, so don't don't just jump right on to it. That's one of my favorite ones that you go. I love this one. Yeah. So if if uh if you could be sitting here in the speakeasy right now, smoking a cigar, having your busters brown, and you could pick any historic figure to be sitting in my seat or Justin's seat just to have a a beer or a cocktail and just shoot the shit essentially.

SPEAKER_06 1:38:20

Alive or dead.

SPEAKER_05 1:38:21

Huh. Yeah. Who would that be?

SPEAKER_02 1:38:23

You know, we were thinking about that one. Yeah, we were we were at Bravery the other night and you were asking about singers that I love, and we talked about Aretha. You know, just to have a girl in the mix tonight. I know she smokes cigarettes at some point in her life. I don't know if she smokes cigars ever, but if Aretha could be in this room and just talk, just talk to me about what was the session like for Ain't No Way. What was the session like for respect when you did after you finished that lead vocal, were you happy? Or where did you want to do it again? Uh yeah, it could be so many people, but I would love to have some quality FaceTime with Aretha Franklin. Good answer.

SPEAKER_05 1:39:04

Ah, that's impressive because um thank you. I think that that's legit because our last guest, uh, it was believe it or not, Pee Wee Herman. But yeah, you know, well, you know, everybody's got their you know.

SPEAKER_02 1:39:14

That's right. That's right. Pee-wee was doing his thing until he wasn't. Well, hey, it's all good. I got love for you, Pee-wee. We all love Pee-wee.

SPEAKER_00 1:39:25

Yeah, oh my God.

SPEAKER_06 1:39:26

Today's word of the day is Lama. You are funny. Yeah. People disagree. So uh the next one here, this is this is interesting. Given our given our guest, uh your favorite musical artist, and it does not have to mean it's someone that you perform with. It could just be someone that you get in the car and like, I this is my go-to list, like, go to listen. This is it. Stevie. Stevie?

unknown 1:39:55

Yeah.

SPEAKER_06 1:39:56

Okay.

SPEAKER_02 1:39:57

You know, and uh it could be so many, but Stevie. Yeah. And I've had the pleasure to work with him live and in the studio, and he's such a wealth of knowledge, but a beautiful soul. Just yeah. I love it. It was fun.

SPEAKER_05 1:40:13

You know what? Speaking of Stevie Wonder, um, I've always I've always wondered about I mean, I he's blind. He's completely blind, right? He doesn't even see like gray or nothing, it's just black, right? I don't know. That I don't know. But do you think that you know they say that when people lose one of their senses, their other senses become more powerful? Uh-huh. Um, if he had total perfect vision, maybe he wouldn't have been the superstar he was. I don't know. Maybe. You know what I'm saying? Yeah. I've always thought about that because I don't know how you can write all these songs and perform on stage and play the piano totally blind.

SPEAKER_07 1:40:48

Yes.

SPEAKER_05 1:40:48

And and sing these songs he sang. And right, he wrote most of his songs, I believe.

SPEAKER_07 1:40:53

Yes.

SPEAKER_02 1:40:53

It's unreal. And you know, when when he started, you know, he had hits as a solo artist from little Stevie Wonder. Little Stevie Wonder, he's like, what, 14 or something? Yeah, I think 13 or 13. 13. Yeah, crazy. And but when he started being grown-up Stevie Wonder, you know, music of my mind, I think that was 1974, where he played all the instruments on the record for the and that was one of the first times anybody had ever done that. Yeah. Uh where he was writing and producing his own records. Yeah. He was, you know, I think when he wrote Talking Book with uh You Are the Sunshine of My Life and Maybe Your Baby and Tuesday Heartbreak on that record. I don't know if he was 30.

SPEAKER_03 1:41:31

Wow.

SPEAKER_02 1:41:31

That's what I'm saying. That's incredible. That's what I'm saying. I don't know if Living for the City, he might have been 30. He might have been 30 writing songs like that, man.

SPEAKER_05 1:41:42

By the way, is he in the rock and roll hall of fame?

SPEAKER_02 1:41:44

That's a good question.

SPEAKER_05 1:41:45

I just threw that out there. I don't know if they consider that rock and roll. I think so.

SPEAKER_02 1:41:48

And that's another delineation, but you know.

SPEAKER_05 1:41:52

We could do a whole podcast on all the people that should be on that rock and roll hall of fame that aren't.

SPEAKER_02 1:41:55

You know, and there are people that have been inducted that are not necessarily rock and roll artists. Yeah. But they include that.

SPEAKER_06 1:42:02

I think the rock and roll part is a loose term. Yeah. Because I think there's just like there's no other Hall of Fame other than that one that's like, yeah.

SPEAKER_05 1:42:10

We'll look that one up. We'll look it up. We'll get by. So uh okay. I'm wondering if we already covered this. I'm curious to hear your answer on this one. Okay. What is what's your favorite place to travel for a weekend getaway or a week getaway? Anywhere in the world, you just say, I want to go to this place and just do.

SPEAKER_02 1:42:31

Yeah, I would have to go for more than a week, but one of my favorite cities on the planet is Prague in the Czech Republic. It's just it's romantic like Paris, but at a fraction of the budget. Yeah. And it's, you know, you can still stay at the Four Seasons or you know, high-end hotels, but the city, the lights across the bridge and the castle, and the food is good, and the people are welcoming, and there's a music scene there. Um I like Prague. I like it.

SPEAKER_05 1:43:01

That's interesting. Never been to Prague. You gotta do it. Our last word. Just so you know, our last guest said Lake LA. Yeah. I mean, okay. Good good. Good on them. Good on them. When Jester, he's not gonna be happy. I'm just kidding, Jester.

SPEAKER_06 1:43:16

I'm never gonna be on the show again. Don't ask me. Um so if you, so you're in this uh luxurious, beautiful speakeasy here. Yes, I am. If you were to have your own speakeasy, your own illustrious, very secretive speakeasy, what would your password to get in be? Ooh, what could it be? Uh we all know Barts, but what would yours be?

SPEAKER_00 1:43:47

Oh, I know what it would be. Uh-oh. Rosebud.

SPEAKER_06 1:43:50

Oh my god. That's that's clever. And then you drop a you have to drop a like a snow globe on something. To drop a snow globe at the door so they know it broke. I like that rosebud, man.

SPEAKER_05 1:44:02

Isn't that isn't that how that movie started and ended? I believe Citizen Camp, right? It starts out with rosebud because he's like all messed up, and at the end it's rosebud. At the end it's rosebud. Oh my god. Well, now every if you ever do have the speakeasy.

SPEAKER_02 1:44:18

We all know the that's cool.

SPEAKER_06 1:44:22

That's cool. I'm good with that. So bring your snow globes. Okay, okay.

SPEAKER_05 1:44:25

You you enjoying this part of the thing here?

SPEAKER_02 1:44:27

Yeah, this doesn't hurt at all. Yeah. Alcohol helps. Indeed. Thanks, Buzz.

SPEAKER_04 1:44:33

Buzz. We love you. We have we're gonna give him a pay raise after this. I no, no, it's only a second job. No, that's true. He doesn't get to ask for anything. Okay, here we go.

SPEAKER_05 1:44:44

So this is a uh I mean this this one I'm really curious. Um, if you could instantly just master any skill, what would it be? Uh drop of a hat, just boom, I could just be an opera singer or whatever.

SPEAKER_02 1:45:01

I would be doing something. If I was not in the music business, I think we've talked about this before, I would be doing something with airplanes. I don't know if I would be a pilot. Wow. I don't know, but I am fascinated still how this big thing can fly. This big thing can get in the air and go around the world and land, and you get out and it's different people, different language, different money, different food, it's different. And you just got off of this thing that weighs tens of tons.

SPEAKER_05 1:45:37

Yeah, they I uh you know, me as a pilot, I as as I recall a Boeing a Boeing 747, which I think is still the one of the bigger airplanes in the world. Now they have that double decker thing, but yeah, I remember it was a million pounds. A million pounds is flying in the freaking air.

SPEAKER_02 1:45:53

That's crazy. Fascinating. Yeah, I don't know what I would do, but I think I would be doing having something to do, excuse me, with airplanes.

SPEAKER_06 1:46:01

That's cool, man. Yeah. I would just want to be the uh the light lantern dude that does. Isn't that cool? Yeah, because like you see the one the video of the one guy like doing like a whole dancing thing. Like, yeah, I would do that. I would be like stupid down there. Like I wouldn't last that long. Like somebody would be like, get this dude out of here, he's fired. But I would have fun doing it for like, you know, the I guess two hours that they had allowed me to do.

SPEAKER_05 1:46:24

Can I just answer the question if I could do that? Yeah. I would be Lamont Van Hook singing on stage in front of a million people. Hanging out with Rod Stewart, hanging out with Rod Stewart, kicking soccer balls and that's great.

SPEAKER_06 1:46:37

Um something on your bucket list that you're determined to cross off.

SPEAKER_02 1:46:45

Ooh. You know, there are a lot of singers and players I would like to make music with. Um my dream gig, I've said it for years, and it's still true if you guys are listening. I wanna I want to tour with the stones. I want to tour with the stones.

SPEAKER_06 1:47:05

Okay.

SPEAKER_02 1:47:06

I want to tour with the stones. You guys hear me? Yeah.

SPEAKER_05 1:47:10

I think he wants to tour the stones. Isn't isn't Mick Jagger our next guest next uh next post? Next week, yeah. We could we could hit him up. I don't know.

SPEAKER_06 1:47:17

I will be here. If he gets us on the phone with Phil Collins, we'll hook him up. Okay. Still waiting for that speaker phone phone call. Okay. Wow, man.

SPEAKER_02 1:47:26

That's uh that's yeah, something on my butt. You know, I still love to travel when I'm not working. I travel for work, but I still love to travel. Something off of my bucket list, you know. It seems like it's the stones, though. I want to work with the stones. I'm available.

SPEAKER_06 1:47:44

You gotta learn the the pointy fingers. You go or pointy fingers you gotta learn in the in the in the behind the back chicken. Yes, yes.

SPEAKER_02 1:47:51

I gotta do a big dagger shuffle. I got it.

SPEAKER_00 1:47:53

All right, just call me for the gig, Mick. I got you.

SPEAKER_02 1:47:55

All right. I got you.

SPEAKER_06 1:47:57

Because he's gonna be watching and making sure that the finger pointing is happening. Yes. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 1:48:00

I'll be ready. We gotta start you up, buddy.

SPEAKER_02 1:48:02

I'll gotta start me up. You start me up, I never stop. Come on. That's right.

SPEAKER_05 1:48:08

Okay, we're getting, we're almost there, brother. You're doing great. Okay, good. So now I'm gonna, because of who you are, I'm gonna have to qualify this. So the the question is what's the best concert you've ever been to? But I'm gonna say that you weren't performing at a performer, yeah. Been to a lot of great shows.

SPEAKER_02 1:48:26

Oh, I'm thinking like thousands. The one that sticks out immediately, my first country show. You know, growing up, I didn't want toys and stuff, I didn't want clothes. I wanted and concert tickets. And my mother was really keenly locked into that. Um so 19, I think it was 1984, I went to my first country concert. The Juds were headlining, and Garth Brooks was opening. It's pretty far back when Garth was an opener. But I had so much fun at that show. Me and my cousin Kelly went to that show and we had we had so much fun that the people that was at the Shoreline Amphitheater in Mountain View, uh outdoor shit. Uh we had so much fun that the people around us had a lot of fun. Because we were yeah, I don't go, I don't go to a show to sit still, I go to a show to participate. Yeah. Uh like I like to see people when I'm on stage performing. It's you know, if it's the right song, you can sit there and sit and enjoy yourself, and I can see that. But if we are laying it down, it needs to be up on your feet or arms in the air or something. Yep. So I can have fun too. So when I go to a show, I'm all I'm all in it. Okay. I'm all in it for the performers on stage. I'm here to have a good time. Yeah.

SPEAKER_05 1:49:43

That's so you should be. Exactly. Last question jet from Justin. This is my favorite question. Oh my. It is about this.

SPEAKER_06 1:49:50

This is his favorite question. Okay. Mine was multiple questions ago, but I get I get to ask his favorite question. Okay.

SPEAKER_02 1:49:57

Let's see.

SPEAKER_06 1:49:58

The best. Piece of advice that you have ever received.

SPEAKER_02 1:50:03

That's easy. My grandfather, I remember I was about to go to college and he used to come by the house and play uh play the piano. Play my dad's piano. And I remember he had these long hairs, long gray hairs on the tops of his hands. And I would just go down in the studio and just watch him play. And this particular day I was sitting on the piano bench next to him, just listening to him play, and we were talking a little bit. And he told me, son, you're about to go away to school. And I want to advise you to be timely, is what he said. Be timely. What he meant was don't be late. Don't have people looking for you, wondering where you are. And then, you know, years later, I do break into the business where that is a gigantic no-no. Late? The artist can be late. Nobody else can be late. And you gotta come to rehearsal rehearsed. You don't come to rehearsal to learn the music, you come to rehearsal to shape the music, to tweak the music. But there are a lot of newbies and some old people like me that think they don't have to prepare. So yeah, my my grandfather telling me to be timely. I will never forget it, and I've taken it to heart. And some of the veterans in the business have come to me after a gig and told me that I have a good reputation around time, around town of being on time and being prepared. And I can't ask for anything more than that. Because that is my that's my goal. If you hire me for your gig, I don't want you to have to worry about what I'm supposed to do. Yeah. I got you, I got you covered on what I'm supposed to do. Right. You can worry about something else. That is my job. And that's how you keep a job. You make yourself uh valuable to the artist by doing what you were hired to do and doing it well. Exactly. And you will work. But if you want to come in late and unprepared and entitled, it might be too late to replace you for this gig. But you will not be called for the next one. And you know, I'm yeah, I'm grateful for a 40-plus year career. I must be doing something right most of the time. You know? Yeah, I'm grateful. Yeah, but yeah, my grandfather telling me to be timely. I'll never forget it. And my grandmother on the same uh occasion after my senior ball where I drank too much, and I knew I think she knew I was gonna drink too much. So my grandmother called me at like eight o'clock in the morning the next day. How you doing, son? I was like, but I remember her telling me, trouble is a lot easier to get into than it is to get out of.

SPEAKER_05 1:52:50

That's good advice, too.

SPEAKER_02 1:52:52

I was like, whoa, never forgot it. Yeah. Yeah. So don't get in trouble.

SPEAKER_06 1:52:57

I like that. Yeah. Well, it doesn't help that Lamont was 15 minutes late to the show. Okay. Um anyway.

SPEAKER_02 1:53:05

That is not true. That is not so.

SPEAKER_06 1:53:08

15 minutes early. Okay, my.

SPEAKER_02 1:53:10

Sorry, maybe I should have said that. My license plate on my first car that I bought outright said not one to be late. Really? Yeah. Wow, I'm not sure. And I've been late, you know, very few times, but I am driven to distraction by being late. I'm just, I need a to a cocktail to calm down if I show up late, because I'm taking a good place.

SPEAKER_06 1:53:31

You can take Buzz with us with you. He'll make sure. Um, all right, Lamont. Uh this comes the point of the show. This is this is this is the end. This is it. This is this is we are we are a wrap. Um just getting started, man. I know, man.

SPEAKER_05 1:53:44

Um, so this this now we let me just say this too. We sc I said this on the last break. We scratched the surface just barely. There's so much more to Lamont Van Hook.

SPEAKER_06 1:53:55

There's the look, I think everybody's gonna kind of get this at some point here as they listen to the show's brand new show. Uh huh. Um, if you're on the show once, you are going to have to come back to the show again because we are going to go even deeper into your we are we're only allotted so much time. Yes. Did I get that? But we everybody just just be ready for having your time on here for multiple multiple sessions.

SPEAKER_02 1:54:23

As long as Buzz is here, I'm I'm good. It's gonna, it's Buzz is here, I'm I'm good. Yeah.

SPEAKER_06 1:54:28

We're we're we're investigating Buzz right now. Um so this is your time uh to if there is anything you want to plug, if there's anyone you want to thank, if there's anyone you want to talk to, this is your moment, this is not ours. We are going to be dead silent for you. Uh this is your moment. Whatever you have on your mind, whatever you want to let the people know, this is your moment. Go ahead, man.

SPEAKER_02 1:54:54

Well, I am grateful for the opportunity. Thank you guys for inviting me. I uh I am having a good time, and and like I said, this didn't hurt at all. Um I had a great songwriting session today, so I want to say hey to Jacob Miller. We're gonna finish this song uh Monday. Um, and just thank you all, everybody that's listening to the record and leaving comments on my socials. I'm really learning the socials, you guys. I it's just it's like a full-time job. Uh and I'm uh getting my feet wet, and I'm gonna post more, I promise. But I really appreciate you know you coming up after a show and saying, hey, I heard your record, or I heard about your record, or I'm glad to see you on the road with this artist. I've seen you on the road with that artist. I'm just uh grateful to be acknowledged. And uh we got more to do, everybody, so just uh stay with me. All right, that's how you do that.

SPEAKER_06 1:55:50

All right then. See, that wasn't scary at all. That wasn't scary at all.

SPEAKER_05 1:55:53

Uh Bart, any last words? Uh just been an absolute pleasure and honor to hang out with you tonight. And uh, me too. Yeah, man. Thank you so much for doing this, man. I think uh yeah, I think you just picked up a lot more fans and uh That's all good. Yeah, you're just a great guy. That's all lovely. That's all you man. Love you back.

SPEAKER_00 1:56:11

There it is. Yeah.

SPEAKER_06 1:56:12

All right, folks. That does it for episode two uh of Deep Diving in the Speakeasy. Uh join us next time. Uh we'll follow us on our Instagram. Um we'll we also have a Facebook that's gonna be coming up live here shortly. Uh we will post all uh photos that we have from um from our show that we have for each time. Uh a couple little uh information snippets that we'll put out for you guys as well of who we're gonna have our next guest. Uh, you know, we'll have all that on the on the social, so please give us a follow and please tell your friends uh and family to give us a uh follow and a listen as well. And that is gonna do it. Thank you guys, and we'll see you on the next.