Music Connection (California) - April 1998
by Rick Terkel
"I'm not into ripping off Led Zeppelin. I don't take parts of their songs to create new ones, as some bands are doing," rifles Atlantic Records recording artist Michael White. " My hearts in that kind of music-my songs have the spirit of Led Zeppelin. I feel I write similar to how they did by taking a feeling and translating it into music."
In several recent Robert Plant interviews, the artist claims that everyone from the Cult to Whitesnake has ripped him off. I wonderif Plant is aware of the fact that labelmate White has a Led Zep tribute band- The White? "Actually, Robert Plant played a part in my signing to Atlantic," says White, speaking by telephone from his Toronto hotel suite. "I've been doing the tribute since 1979."
White's self-titled Atlantic release seems to have gotten lost in the shuffle. It is actually an exceptional debut disc (it received a five 'K' rating from Kerrang magazine) showcasing the veteran artist's solid song craftsmanship. Multi-instrumentalist White sings each song with a level of emotiveness unmatched by his more financially successful peers. He projects the feeling of a wise, mystic storyteller. The album, recorded in West Germny and produced by Mack (Queen, Deep Purple), features an unlikely array of players, including Bobby Choulnard and Alan St. Jon (both of Billy Squier's band) and guitarist Randy Piper (formerly of WASP). White reveals that Atlantic spent $300,000 on the LP, but he's more discrete when asked about the label's questionable marketing/promotional effort. "The album is doing well in Canada and Europe," he rationalizes. "In the states I tend to get regional radio and sales in areas that I perform in." White did have a regional hit in the Toronto market last winter.
Southern California has always been home to this rocker with the Plant-like pinup looks. White has always been a fighter in an industry that weeds out the weak. In 1976, White was fronting an LA band called 'The Boyz', which featured current Dokken guitarist George Lynch. Actually, the singer has a history of surrounding himself with young and talented players; Nikki Sixx, Randy Piper, and the underrated Lanny Cordola (who handles the axe chores for Giuffria) are among his former colleagues. "I'd like to think I have good taste," White says modestly.
For seven years now, Michael and his band have criss-crossed the US and Canada virtually nonstop. Usually playing venues with a capacity of 1000 to 2500, the group performs a varied two-hour set of Zeppelin songs intermixed with White's originals. Live performance is admittedly the artist's metier.
"The foundation that you build with the crowd is very important," he says. "I want them to remember me-I want it to last a long time. When we're out there, we try and play different arrangements each night. We never practice ourselves silly, as some bands do. I like to climb right out to the edge of that limb, and no one knows how you're gonna make it back or what is gonna happen next. The crowd can sense a bit of tension...and that's exciting." Why have The White been absent from the local scene for the last three years? "You had to pay to play and I refuse to pay," he answers. His firm stance has paid off for him in a big way. Recently, White was asked to play two shows at the Country Club in Reseda with a guarantee; both shows were near sellouts.
Many feel that today's hard rock lacks a certain inherent excitement; White wants to change that. "If I have any kind of goal," he says, "it's to bring back spontaneity." It's a worthy challenge, and Michael White is clearly up to it.