Sunday's Sofa-Surfin' Sidenote - Here Comes Lemmy

Even if you don't have a great appreciation for heavy metal, you have to respect the legend that is Lemmy. Even if you don't have a soft spot for rock legends, you still have no choice but to love the Lemmy. Motörhead is a British rock band formed in 1975 by bassist, singer and songwriter Ian Fraser Kilmister, known mostly by his stage name Lemmy, who has remained the sole constant member of the group. I've been a fan of Motörhead for about ten years. I didn't grow up with them, but had a friend in Budapest who suggested I give them a listen. Years later in 2006, I had the privilege of seeing Lemmy and Co. in concert at the Novarock Music Festival just outside Vienna. btw, if you're in the neighborhood, the lineup for 2010 is pretty kick*ss: http://www.novarock.at/jart/prj3/novarock/main.jart?rel=en&reserve-mode=active). It's a 3-day festival, and camping is a must. I've been in love with him/them ever since. It's the perfect blow-off-steam music -windows down, and the stereo cranked up. You may get a few unappreciative looks from the old farts next to you at the traffic light, but you're gonna have that anyway.

A fantastic documentary, Lemmy, directed by Greg Olliver and Wes Orshoski, premiered at the South by Southwest film festival two weeks ago. Here's the teaser from the website (http://www.lemmymovie.com/)


How great is Dave Grohl, chiming in with his two cents on what constitutes a real rock legend? And he is, in my humble opinion, absolutely spot-on. Lemmy is everything that real rock-n-roll should be. All of the noise, none of the glamour. I can't wait to see the movie. Gonna have to wait awhile though, they are planning to show the film all over the festival circuit, with a release on DVD later in the year.

Here's another YouTube clip, probably not one of my favorites but definitely one of their bigger hits in the early 80's, the Ace of Spades.


Lemmy is a character worth documenting. He is 64 and still rockin'. He lives in LA in a small $900/month apartment turned Motörhead museum, but if he's not on tour or sleeping, he can be found hanging out at the Rainbow Bar and Grill on the Sunset Strip, drinking Jack and Cokes and writing music in the corner. He has done it all, seen it all, and tried it all. He is a classic, in every sense of the word. If you get a chance to see him live, you need to make it happen. Long live the Lemster.