Nearly a decade ago now, I was able to catch Jack Russell’s Great White in Daytona (with fellow ’80s acts FireHouse and Bobby Blotzer’s Ratt) back in late 2016. It was an exceptionally fun October night that I now hold even more dearly in my memories since Russell’s passing last year.
So when I heard that the current lineup of Great White would be heading to the Hard Rock Live Orlando (with direct support from Slaughter), I knew I had to finally catch the original version of the band live after all these years (you may also recall my recent interview with founding guitarist Mark Kendall last month where we also spoke about the show).
I’m happy to report that this latest incarnation of the band – which has seen its share of frontmen come and go since Russell’s tenure and leading up to current lead singer Brett Carlisle – are indeed doing the band’s legacy justice (despite being a tad on the “safe” side while live now).
After indulging (just a tad) at the next door Hard Rock Cafe with the family/usual suspects (the wife Brooke and son Jacob, each photographers), we were in the venue with ample time to catch openers Slaughter, who were surprisingly one of the few bands still left from their era that I had yet to see live.
The band came out with guns a-blazin’, opening with the fiery “Mad About You,” and it was instantly clear it was worth the wait all these years for Slaughter. Two more tracks from the band’s 1990 debut album followed in the form of “Burnin’ Bridges” and “Spend My Life” before “Unknown Destination” took things in another direction.
Slaughter bassist Dana Strum (left) and vocalist Mark Slaughter gave it everything they had this past Saturday night at the Hard Rock Live in Orlando. (Photo by Brooke Striewski)
“Eye to Eye,” “Days Gone By,” and “Real Love” all followed before the lighters (or more accurately these days, cell phones) came out for the timeless power ballad “Fly to the Angels.” This of course paved way for their epic anthem “Up All Night,” which had the crowd pumping their fists to the very last note. But the guys still had a little life left in them, and jammed out to a section of The Who’s “Won’t Get Fooled Again” before they fully wrapped things up
And finally, Great White hit the stage just after 9:30pm. Opening with the modest “Desert Moon” (honestly not one of my favorites from them) before things getting kicked up a notch via “Lady Red Light” and “Stick It” (The latter of which much more up my alley and one of my personal favorites. Also to note, I heard a much older fan beside me shout “You were just a baby!” during its introduction, and I’m still not sure if she was referring to me, or possibly Carlisle on stage).
Things slowed down yet again for the more blues-ly numbers “Rollin’ Stoned” and “House of Broken Love,” as well as the first power ballad of their set, “The Angel Song.” “Mista Bone,” “Gonna Getcha,” and “Big Goodbye” each kept the momentum going.
Great White frontman Brett Carlisle (left) in the moment with guitarist/co-founder Mark Kendall at the Hard Rock Live in Orlando, FL this past Saturday, 8-23-25. (Photo by Brooke Striewski)
Before we knew it, the night was already winding down as the band launched into one of their most well-known tender tracks, “Save Your Love.” And at last, one of the greatest ’80s hard rock/glam/hair metal anthems of all time, “Rock Me,” followed before the band called it a day with their signature Ian Hunter cover, “Once Bitten, Twice Shy.”
Leading up to the show, I saw some negative online comments, criticizing the band for still going without “most” of their original members. Not only is it impossible to do when at least two of your said original members have since passed away, but as I explained to my son, whatever the current version of the band may be, these groups are still keeping the music itself alive as best as they can, and I’ll still take what I can get over nothing at all (just look at the recent major loss to the music world with Ozzy Osbourne, for example), and I’ve got nothing bad to say about the current versions of neither Great White, nor Slaughter.
When it comes to elite rock/metal guitarists, there’s typically a select few that come to mind for most, whether it be Jimmy Page, Tony Iommi, Joe Perry, or the late, great, Eddie Van Halen. But for my money Great White lead guitarist Mark Kendall has always deserved a spot at the table nearby these greats, and the band he co-founded more than four decades ago now has been fairly underrated in many of the annals of rock history (at least in my opinion).
So when I had the chance to speak to Kendall from his home via phone this past Tuesday, July 15 ahead of Great White’s upcoming Orlando date at the Hard Rock Live on Saturday, August 23 (which Rewind It Magazine will also be there to cover), I was both completely prepared for it, and elated.
I was glad to hear that I was the first interview of the day for him as we each settled in for our morning (or in my case in the time zone I’m in, early afternoon) cups of coffees. One of the first things I asked was when the last time the band had hit the central, FL market, to which he replied, “I’m not really sure. I know we played some shows in Ft. Lauderdale, FL last year, but as far as Orlando itself I don’t think we’ve been there for awhile, so we’re pretty excited to be returning.”
He continued; “We used to play the Spring Break programs with MTV and at one point were kind of like the back up band playing on the beach, so a lot of memories there in that sense. Just Florida in general has always been a great experience with the best fans for us.”
Flyer for upcoming Great White/Slaughter show at the Hard Rock Live in Orlando, FL on Saturday, August 23.
Great White have been more or less knocking out shows across the U.S. since the start of 2025 with various bands (namely current tour mates Slaughter), so I was curious what some of the highlights have been on the tour so far. He informed me; “We played kind of a small area called Elko, NV recently and the fans were just crazy, and it was really a good show! Since we don’t tour like we did back in the day on a bus where we’re gone from home and touring for like a year and a half, we’ll just go out and play maybe one or two shows then go back home, so there’s a lot more flying involved now. But the fun part about it though is getting to play with a lot of bands we never played with before back in the day that we respect like Styx and REO Speedwagon. So we’re meeting these guys that we knew from afar but never really knew personally, so that’s kind of fun.”
Kendall furthered his point; “And we basically grew up with our fans, so it’s fun to see fans from back then still rocking, and the new generations that come along with them, too. A lot of times like with our parents, the music was so far removed from what we were listening to as teenagers that we couldn’t really relate to their music. But with the parents of today that our introducing their kids to our stuff and the like, I think most of them realize ‘Hey, these guys rock pretty hard!'”
I was wondering how far back the band’s history with said tour mates Slaughter went, and he told me; “We have a lot of history with Slaughter! For one thing they’re on the same agency as us. We never toured with them per se, but I’ve known Mark (Slaughter, vocalist) since he was about nineteen when he was with Vinnie Vincent (in the Vinnie Vincent Invasion), so we’re pretty good friends. When we play together we always have a great night, and I think we give the fans their money’s worth.”
With a catalog that spans thirteen full studio albums, I was curious as to what songs he looked forward to playing the most each night, as well as any tracks from the vault he might possibly like to unearth someday. He told me; “Well, I like what they call the ‘deep cuts,’ you know songs that weren’t really on the radio maybe as much as some of the others (or at all). One thing I also like is when we maybe extend jams because we don’t really know what’s going to happen with those, so you know that makes it kind of exciting. Of course I still like playing “Rock Me” because it creates a lot of memories for me.”
He continued his thoughts further; “When you finish an album and the record company comes down to the studio, you kind of look at them to see how they’re reacting, and I remember them getting real excited when they first heard that song (“Rock Me”). It was our first really big hit, and it was our third album! Before that we had to grind it out, and went out and toured with Judas Priest, Whitesnake, and Europe for our first album. And when we came home, the record company wasn’t that excited, so they dropped us off the label! So now we have no record deal, no money, and we had just toured for almost a year and now we’ve got to start over? I mean how tough is this business?” (Laughs)
Kenndall explained some more; “So then we made our second record on our own by borrowing money and got a hit on a L.A. radio station, which was enough to get the attention of Capitol Records. They ended up coming down to see the band play, and now we’ve got our second opportunity, so now we’ve got to get it right! To get a second chance is a miracle, but we didn’t think a third chance was going to happen, so to come out with our third album and a song that excited a big label like Capitol like that was truly a wonderful situation. So we got our first big hit and sold a million records! (Laughs) And we’ve played that song a lot now, but it’s always for a different audience, and it’s always a nice feeling with all of those memories attached to it.”
He wrapped up his thoughts by saying; “This year we’ve pulled out some songs that we maybe haven’t played in twenty-five years. We’re playing “Stick It” in the set now, which is from our very first album. And even though it didn’t do too well at the time, we gained a fanbase, so it wasn’t a waste of time or like we were going out on those early tours totally cold. But believe it or not, when we change just two or three songs in the set list, it gives the set a whole new look just by doing that. We try to grab something from as many albums as we can, but we can easily get thirteen or fourteen songs in with a ninety minute set.”
While most people were busy tossing their VHS collections as soon as they went out of style, I continued to expand my own with anything and everything ‘old school’ I could find. One such film was 1987’s Maid to Order with the baby-faced Ally Sheedy, which also featured a brief appearance from Great White at a party scene as a backing band called the Loaded Blanks (which I honestly did not catch on to until maybe a few years back). So of course I had to pick Kendall’s brain a little on what that experience was like, and he filled me in; “It was a medium that we weren’t really used to (movie-making), so that was a lot of fun to be a part of. We played the backing band for the maid played by Merry Clayton, who’s actually a kick-ass singer!”
He continued; “We learned a few things along the way, and there were these guys on the crew who kept sneaking this little frog somewhere in every scene, but not telling the director! So you can watch the movie and be like, ‘Look there’s that frog!’ (Laughs) And the extras that played our roadies in our scenes were crazy! We would go out to the garage and be snipping on a bottle of whiskey with them after we had just got done talking with Ally Sheedy in the kitchen (Laughs), so it was a lot of fun.”
He continued; “And back then we were also in the Joe Piscopo special for HBO where we played the backing band while he played Frank Sinatra. And I came jumping threw the air while playing the solo and he said ‘Marvelous and wonderful guitar!’ (Laughs) So it was just a blast.”
Back in 2019, I was also able to speak with former Great White singer, the late Jack Russell for Rewind It Magazine, and I asked him a similar question at the time as one from earlier regarding what songs really affected him while performing live the most, to which he answered the power ballad “Save Your Love” was a very emotional/spiritual experience for him. I asked Mark if he felt somewhat similar while performing it, to which he stated; “For me it’s a great memory because I was working with a guy named Stephen who was in the band briefly on guitar and keyboards before Michael Lardie joined. We wrote that song and it was almost all Stephen’s music, and I kind of changed it around to be an acoustic song, but we didn’t use it until later. And Stephen passed away a few years ago, so that’s kind of a fond memory for me.”
He went on; “That’s cool that it was emotional for Jack. For me, it wasn’t a huge hit, but when we played arenas, every Bic lighter was going (Laughs). So with our fans that like our band, it was a hit to them. I don’t know if I’m as emotionally attached to it as Jack was – maybe the song meant something to him with a girlfriend or a wife or somebody in his life perhaps. But it was a nice song, and every band had their own ballad of sorts back in the day.”
Regarding Jack Russell, who left us nearly a year ago now last August, Kendall elaborated with hindsight; “We were the best of friends and did everything together. He had gotten into some trouble maybe three or four months after I first met him, so I had to start a band (Dante Fox) from scratch and even had a chick singer at first until he was able to get out, and then we took him over the singer we had and things kind of developed from there.”
He continued further; “A lot of the memories from when we first met, being at his parents house with these huge dreams – we were doing interviews like you and I are doing right now with cassette players acting like we had made it. (Laughs) We used to pretend like we were playing the Forum, and then we ended up actually playing it. All the stuff we dreamed about we really believed it. And it all happened, so that’s pretty surreal.”
Kendall ended his thoughts by saying; “We were very close. I don’t think we ever had a single argument our entire careers, but it’s just unfortunate that addiction is what separated us. It wasn’t anything personal, and I still loved him to death. But when we separated, I just wanted him to get well and come back to be the best, most kick-ass Jack Russell possible. And although it didn’t really happen that way, that does not take away decades of us touring the world, and all of the shared memories we had together. I’m not going to let addiction take that away from me, because those were just awesome years, man.”
Typically Rewind It Magazine have stayed a fairly regional Florida-based publication, covering events everywhere from Daytona Beach to Tampa/St. Pete since the get-go. However, the upcoming Stadium Rock ’80s Festival in Louisville, KY on August 3rd and 4th is an exception we couldn’t pass up! This event features a killer lineup of ’80s acts (many of which we’ve covered over the years) including Florida rockers and our friends Nova Rex. So this unique occasion called for a special write-up (no matter what the distance might be!)!
Hosted by comedian and beloved metalhead Don Jamieson (formerly of That Metal Show), the event was first announce in May, and will coincide in what the major of Louisville has officially declared as “80s Week” from August 1st to 7th. In addition to live music, the festival will also feature everything from ’80s merchandise, fan zones, trivia, classic arcade games, and even a DeLorean straight out of Back to the Future! Below we provide a detailed break down of each act to play over the course of the festival in consecutive order.
Don Jameison (seen here at The Lynn Family Stadium on May 8) of That Metal Show fame will host the upcoming event this August in Louisville, KY.
Nova Rex:
Going strong since 1985, Nova Rex have been bringing the party with them wherever they go for nearly four decades. Anthems like “Bring the House Down Tonight” and “Turn It Up Loud” will no doubt be heard blaring throughout the stadium to kick things off at the massive festival. Check them out on stage, and in their new documentary, Nova Rex: Ain’t Easy Staying Cheesy.
Kenny Wilkerson, Nova Rex bassist/co-founder and star of the film Nova Rex: Ain’t Easy Stayin’ Cheesy, at The Lynn Family Stadium on Wednesday, May 8.
Pretty Boy Floyd:
Good old Pretty Boy Floyd are one of those bands who emerged from the late ’80s that never lets down. And speaking of Nova Rex, I actually saw both bands live for the first time together on the same bill in Daytona Beach back in 2018. Their hits “Rock and Roll (Is Gonna Set the Night on Fire)” and the power ballad “I Wanna Be With You” are enough to get any crowd moving no matter the location.
Enuff Z’Nuff:
One of the many bands playing I have still yet to cross off the old bucket list (though I did manage to catch and even meet former guitarist Tony Fennell – who has served two terms with the band since 2016 – at a When In Rome II show in Orlando back in 2020). Yet, hearing such classics as “New Thing” and “Fly High Michelle” live has still alluded me all of these years (but hopefully not for much longer!).
Trixter:
Hailing from my home state of New Jersey at the tail end of the wave of ’80s metal, Trixter were notable for such infectious hits as “One In A Million” and “Give It To Me Good,” which no doubt the band will soon unleash on Louisville for sure. Just last year I was able to catch bassist P.J. Farely on stage with Fozzy, and if the rest of the band’s energy is anything like his, they surely will not disappoint!
Ron Keel Band:
In my book, Ron Keel and his band Keel were a criminally underrated act at the height of the ’80s heyday, and I’d still love to catch him live in concert some day. I actually revisited the first couple of Keel albums recently, and there’s a lot of great material still to be found within. Audiences can be sure to hear such classics as “Don’t Say You Love Me” and Keel’s version of “Because the Night” over the course of this rocking weekend!
Vixen:
Without a doubt this is one of the most talked-about acts on the bill right now; after recently announcing via their social media platforms that they had parted ways with singer Lorraine Lewis, Vixen are keeping things extremely “hush hush” about who their new “mystery” vocalist might be. But one thing’s for sure, these ladies will have nothing to worry about as long as they maintain the same dedicated level of high energy they did when Rewind It covered them back in 2019!
Vixen performing in Orlando, FL on 10/30/19 (Photo by Brooke Striewski).
John Corabi:
When Motley Crue released their one and only album with John Corabi on vocals in place of Vince Neil in 1994, many fans didn’t quite grasp it at the time…but I was fully there for every minute of it! To this day it remains one of the heaviest albums the Crue have ever put out, and I would love to hear Corabi’s raspy voice singing tracks from both it, and his solo catalog as well. (Side note: if you’ve never actually listened to the self-titled Crue album, start with the track “Hammered;” not only does it feature some of Corabi’s best vocal work ever, but it remains my favorite track from the album to this very day). Aside from his previously-mentioned work with the Crue and solo work, Corabi has also done time with The Scream and Ratt over the years as well (among many others).
L.A. Guns:
What more can be said about L.A. Guns that hasn’t already been said before? Without them, there’d simply be no Guns N’ Roses, and the entire ’80s Sunset Strip scene as a whole might have looked much differently. Earlier this year I was finally able to catch the band live for the first time after many previous missed opportunities, and I can confirm they were definitely worth the wait. Tracks like “Never Enough,” “Rip and Tear,” and “The Ballad of Jayne” are just a few staples of theirs worth noting, and any true fan of ’80s hard rock and heavy metal should try to see the band at least once in their lifetime.
L.A. Guns performing in Mt. Dora, FL on 3/8/24 (Photo by Jacob Striewski).
Aldo Nova:
Here’s one of those unique acts on the bill that often gets overlooked, Aldo Nova. This Canadian guitar virtuoso has been knocking out hits like “Foolin’ Yourself” and “Fantasy” since the early ’80s, and is a must-see for any serious fan of rock guitar. Nova is also an award-winning producer and songwriter who has collaborated with the likes of Blue Oyster Cult to Celine Dion over the years.
Slaughter:
Who wasn’t rocking along to some Slaughter in the late ’80s/early ’90s? It was nearly impossible to escape such anthems as “Up All Night” and “Fly to the Angels,” as well as their track from the 1991 Billand Ted’s Bogus Journey soundtrack, “Shout It Out Loud” (a completely infectious number!). Mark Slaughter and company have been going strong for a long time now, and show no signs of slowing down anytime soon.
Great White:
Another sorely underrated act, Great White have earned second-billing on the festival bill at The Lynn Family Stadium. Largely remembered for their 1989 cover of Ian Hunter’s “Once Bitten, Twice Shy,” the band also has a host of other notable hits in the form of “Save Your Love,” “Rock Me,” and “House of Broken Love” that will surely get fans moving from their seats. I’ve been lucky enough to both see the band live, and even interview former frontman Jack Russell over the years. Definitely make some time for these guys if you haven’t yet by now!
Queensryche:
There’s simply no mistaking the distinctive sound of Queensryche (no matter what era of theirs it might be), nor is there any overlooking the band’s achievements over the years. I’ve been fortunate enough to see the band twice (three times if counting a solo performance by former lead vocalist Geoff Tate just earlier this year) since 2013, even covering the band’s Orlando show for Rewind It back in 2019. From “Queen of the Reich,” “Jet City Woman,” and “I Don’t Believe in Love,” to the timeless power ballad “Silent Lucidity,” there is no shortage of epic music to be heard at any given Queensryche show; don’t pass this one up if you haven’t already seen them before!
Queensryche performing in Orlando, FL on 3/2/19 (Photo by Brooke Striewski).
To wrap things up, The Lynn Family Stadium is a state-of-the-art venue primarily used for sporting events. Opened in 2020, it serves as the home for the Louisville City FC and Racing Louisville FC. The stadium boasts a seating capacity of over 15,000 and features modern amenities, including premium seating options, hospitality suites, and a fan-friendly design. Its central location and advanced facilities make it a prime destination for sports events and concerts, and is located at 350 Adams St., Louisville, Ky. USA.
With renewed interest in the decade of decadence continually growing each year, there’s no shortage of various media information on ’80s hard rock (a.k.a. ‘hair’ or ‘glam’ rock) and heavy metal out there these days. But this new book by rock journalists Tom Beaujour and Richard Bienstock (with a brief forward by Slipknot frontman Corey Taylor) is truly the new bible on ’80s hard rock and heavy metal.
Largely tracing it’s roots back to the influence Van Halen had on the movement in the mid to late ’70s, here the two authors put together a collection of interviews that includes numerous musicians, producers, promoters, magazine editors, and the like, to help tell the tale of arguably one of rock’s greatest eras. Various key members of such staple acts as Motley Crue, Ratt, Guns N’ Roses, Quiet Riot, Dokken, L.A. Guns, W.A.S.P., Poison, Cinderella, and Warrant, – as well as numerous Rewind It Magazine interviewees from over the years – including Jay Jay French of Twisted Sister, Jack Russell of Great White, Brian Forsthye of Kix, and Rachel Bolan of Skid Row (among many others), are just some who help recall the foundation of the genre that changed it all in great detail.
The perspective is unique and fresh, despite some of the stories already found in other published works (many of those involved have previously published their own individual biographies). There’s even a brief but brilliant collection of many never-before-seen photos included as well. In short, Nothin’ But a Good Time is a rollercoaster ride of literature from start to finish, and one of the best of it’s kind currently available on the subject. It simply ‘don’t get better than this.’
You might say Jack Russell has somewhat defined what it means to be a down-and-dirty, hard living, ’80s rocker; he co-founded Great White (along with guitarist Mark Kendall) more than four decades ago, and since then has experienced nearly ever high and low imaginable that the rock and roll lifestyle has to offer. Yet he still fought his way back on to the scene with his version of the band he helped create so long ago (hence the name Jack Russell’s Great White, while Kendall and co. are still performing as a separate version of the band with another singer now).
Recently, Russell had back surgery, but he’ll still be here to rock central, FL this upcoming Saturday, November 16. I was able to briefly speak with Jack via email not too long ago, and asked him to elaborate on said surgery, to which he said, “After all of these years jumping around on stage, my spine had become very compressed. Basically they drilled two of my vertebrae out to make more room for the spinal cord. I’m getting ready to do my first show back in Orlando this weekend, so I doubt I’ll be doing backflips or cartwheels on stage (laughs)! But the band moves around enough, and I’ll let my voice do the talking. I feel great and I’m singing like I’m 25 again…now I sure hope I don’t suck (laughs)!”
With so much material to choose from, I asked Jack what Orlando fans can expect to hear on Saturday night, which he tells me; “I don’t want to give away the set, but let’s just say it’s not going to be the same one people have heard before. We’ve been changing songs, putting new ones in, taking old ones out. I’m sure people who have been coming to see us for a long time don’t wanna hear the same old songs every night, albeit there are still ones that people will always want to hear, like “Rock Me,” “Once Bitten Twice Shy,” etc…
I was also curious what one of his personal favorite songs to perform after all these years was, and he explained; “There are so many, and I change my mind from month to month, but “Save Your Love” is still probably my favorite song.” Ironically, my next question was actually whether or not he still got chills while performing a song like “Save Your Love,” to which he said; “Speaking of “Save Your Love!” Yes, I still get chills when performing that song, and when I sing it I find myself in a very personal space, not really aware of the audience. It’s more of a spiritual thing if you know what I mean.”
Jack also assures me the band has some new material in the works, as well as an autobiography he’s been working on that I asked him how it was going; “It’s coming along great, but when I read some of the chapters, even I can’t believe my life, it reads like a work of fiction (laughs!). But for the most part it’s been one hell of a life, and I wouldn’t trade it for anything.”
I was more than grateful that Jack was willing to take the time to speak to me for this interview, and let him know how much I truly appreciated it. Be sure to catch Jack and the guys in Downtown Orlando this Saturday, the 16th!
