Southern Rock has always stood the test of time and Ron Keel and co are keeping that alive on their latest release South X South Dakota – a collection of 11 tracks of some of the best southern rock music ever recorded. We caught up with Ron at home in South Dakota to relive the first ever trip to Australia and talk about how the new record came about.
Ron: Ron Keel reporting for duty how are you my friend?
Mark: I’m very good thanks Ron and it’s great to hear that you’re safe and well in the States after spending some time with us Downunder just before things started to get crazy!
Ron: Well it has been one helluva year that’s for sure, but I’m in one of the safest places in the US that you could possibly be. I think South Dakota will be the last State to fall!
Mark: (laughs)
Ron: I almost got stuck there in Australia – we were just coming home when they instigated the travel ban and shortly after that everything changed, but I certainly treasure my time there and hope that you will have me back at some point.
Mark: Oh we’d love to have you back. Coincidentally I was talking to Chip Z’Nuff yesterday who was in a similar position, just getting out himself before the flight bans came in.
Ron: That’s right because they were going to the UK afterwards when things started to get shut down. I know they went through some type of ordeal and I’m speaking to Chip for my radio show tomorrow. I’m looking forward to catching up we were on tour in Australia together for a couple of weeks and we never really had the chance to sit down and do an interview so that will be great to finally do that tomorrow.
Mark: Have you heard his new album? I know he’s heard yours!
Ron: I have not. As soon as this interview is over I’ll be blasting it for the rest of the day so I can prepare!
Mark: It’s almost as good as your Ron!
Ron: Wow that’s high praise! (laughs) Thank you Mark!
Mark: I think one of the things I loved most about your new album, which you tipped me off that you’d be releasing a few months back when we were in Melbourne, was that song by Atlanta Rhythm section – it just reminded me what a great band they were and had me diving right back into their back catalogue, so thank you for that Sir.
Ron: You are welcome. That is a great song, a killer guitar riff and a great Classic Rock song about being on the road and being homesick. We had released that as our 2017 single when we rebranded the Badlands House Band as the Ron Keel Band and we needed a song to launch the Project really in 2017. The version that appears on the record is a newer and heavier mix of that song. When I was doing my radio show on KBAD94.5 FM that song just popped up on my playlist at the right time, and I played it on the show and was the prefect choice for us with those heavy guitar riffs and the melodies and the lyrical content. I’m glad to see that song get a new lease of life being included on the South X South Dakota album.
Mark: It took me right back to my youth. Was it hard choosing particular songs by certain bands to cover? You didn’t just chose the biggest songs by the best know names.
Ron: Well there was no thought put into the choosing of the songs. The way the album was born was in the studio recording last years ‘Fight Like a Band.’ We would go in the studio first thing in the morning and the first day of the session you get the drums set up and you get the microphones set up and everybody’s getting their headphones in and you’re dialing in the tones, just getting ready for work. And just to get a level or get a mix we just started jamming on ‘Flirtin’ With Disaster’ one of our favourite Molly Hatchet songs, a song that’s been in the show in the past. So we played it, got the headphone mixes, got the levels set and went on with our business and recorded a couple of ‘Fight Like a Band’ tracks. And at the end of the day we’d have a couple of cocktails and just start jamming. I think we did ‘Rocking Into the Night’ later on that evening, and it kind of went on that way every day.
Mark: Until you found something out?
Ron: Yes, we’d go in and kind of warm up on some of our favourite Southern Rock songs and then we’d play a couple more at the end of the day and after a few days Mike our producer said “You know I’ve been recording those jams” and so I asked him to play them back to me and when I heard it, it absolutely struck me like a ton of bricks – I realised that we had the foundation for something very, very special. It’s just five guys in the studio having fun together playing music that we love. We didn’t even know we were being recorded, so therein lies the magic of that original session. So we had that session and also ‘Ghost Riders in the Sky’ our 2015 debut single produced by Henry Paul of the Outlaws which is a fantastic track, and we also had ‘Homesick’ that we cut in 2017. And we also had some live recordings, and we included one of those on the new album the ‘Creedence Medley’ which closes the record. It’s a medley of their hits that was recorded live at our very first Ron Keel Band show ever.
So the entire album is really an audio scrapbook of our five year history together. And with all those in the can we got to thinking what else do we need? So we had to have an Allman Brothers song so we chose ‘Ramblin’ Man’ I knew it but none of the band did so we worked it up in the studio and when you hear Ramblin’ Man on ‘South X South Dakota’ it’s a true first take. We band stormed through it from top to bottom and we captured that magic again. And of course I wanted a Skynyrd song, you have to have a Lynyrd Skynyrd song on a Southern Rock tribute collection. But I didn’t want to choose an obvious one like ‘Sweet Home Alabama’, or ‘Give Me three Steps’ or ‘Freebird’ I wanted to go a little off reservation as it were, and record my favourite song by them ’Red White and Blue’ the first single and video from the record. It was a Top 30 record for them in 2003 but not everyone knows it. I love how it came out and what it means, it’s not just an American anthem or an anthem for Southern or Classic Rock, it’s a song for everyone around the world. Australia has a red, white and blue flag as well. The message is as string now as when the Van Zant brothers wrote it shortly after 9.11.
Mark: It’s a great collection and something on there for everyone. As I said in my review though it’s a little Bitter-sweet as I loved ‘Fight Like a Band’ and was hoping for a follow up. What news do you have for us Ron?
Ron: Well I’m always going to continue writing, recording and releasing music. To me it’s all about the quality of the product, I want to always do good work, and to me whether I write the song or not is not relevant. Some of my favourite songs I’ve written have not been released or not been big hits. And of course ‘Fight Like a Band’ was a very personal statement – I did write all of the lyrics to that – it felt like dumping out my entire heart and soul into those songs. So now after the Monsters of Rock Cruise and the Australian Tour and releasing South X South Dakota and doing the massive amount of promotion and interviews and now getting back to the live performances as well I feel like I have a dam about to burst!
Mark: (laughs)
Ron: I’ve gotta take a week off! (laughs) Just shut the phone down, get off the computer and escape from reality down here in my man cave at the Keel House where I live and where I’m talking to you right now, just shut myself away and finalise some of these ideas that have been kind of percolating. I’m ready to explode literally with new songs and I can feel that coming on and I’m excited about that surge. I write all the time, whether it’s a lyric idea or a piece of music, I have literally hundreds of pieces of music. When I pick up the guitar in the morning I record the first thing that comes out of me. So I have tons of riffs and song ideas, lots of bits and pieces. But its then that you have to take the time to sit back and listen to those ideas and look through your mountains of notebooks – some of these songs work like a kind of magnet the music and the lyrics or the title will magically gravitate towards each other and then all of a sudden you’ve got the foundation for a song. And then you pursue that, and I love the writing and the creative process and I’m gonna keep doing this as long as I’m alive! Well as long as I’m able to write and record and release good quality music. This is what I do, so yes, there’s always going to be another album. And in the pipeline we have a lot of plans for the new original album that hopefully we’ll get out next year and there’s also a couple of other Projects in mind. I would love to do a live album, and I think the time is perfect for the Ron Keel Band to record a live album here at the Sturgis Bike Rally in a couple of months – I think we’re 42 days away from it and to be able to record it live there, that would include songs from ‘Fight like a Band’ and South X South Dakota’ as well as a couple of the Keel hits and classics, Black Sabbath and Iron Horse! Now that would be a really strong live album that would show the world what the Ron Keel Band is all about. So I’d like to do that as well, and I can’t really put a timetable the new songs but you know when it’s time – there’s a little alarm clock that goes off inside your heart that says “OK time to make a record.”
Mark: Does that always happen?
Ron: It happened for ‘Fight Like a Band’ I knew it was time for this project, this Group, to make an album, to make a statement. And at that time we didn’t have any new songs. But once I made that decision then all the guys came over to my house and we worked on that thing together creatively as a team and magically came up with more songs than I even hoped for. I originally thought the album might be 5 or 6 originals and maybe some re-done versions of Keel classics. Which we did include on ‘Fight Like a Band’ – versions of ‘Right to Rock’ and ‘Tears of Fire.’ So you never know. I’d like to carry on that tradition too by the way with the next full band original album by re-recording some more of the songs from my past. I know the fans always love the original versions better but I really enjoy first of all the challenge or re-tackling that material plus I want to show the fans that I will never forget where I came from – my roots in the 80’s run deep with Keel and I’ll never forget that. And I think those reworked songs on last year’s album fit perfectly with the Ron Keel Band originals. So you’ll probably see a few more next time- it’s gonna happen I promise.
Mark: I think you certainly did them justice.
Mark: One of the highlights for me when you came down to Australia in March was the way you closed your set. I seem to have had a mental blank about your time in Black Sabbath, but when you played that song – wow!
Ron: Well thank you. I’m extremely proud of the Emerald Sabbath project – a Black Sabbath tribute album that features a number of ex-members of Black Sabbath and members of the extended Sabbath family such as Rudy Sarzo who had an extended stint with Ozzy. So Rudy plays bass on the album, and Vinny Appice whose legend needs no explanation plays drums on a couple of tracks. And I got to do three songs that when I joined Black Sabbath in 1984 Tony Iommi handed me the song list and he said “These are the songs for the Tour –learn them and be ready” and three of them – ‘Hole in the Sky’ – the Ozzy track, ‘Trashed’ that had the vocal of Ian Gillan on Born Again and ‘Die Young’ from the Dio era. And I got to sing all of them on the Emerald Sabbath project and finally put my stamp on those songs.
Mark: I’ve not heard a better version of ‘Die Young’ except the original.
Ron: Ronnie was a friend of mine and a mentor, he helped us out immensely – he took us out on tour with him in Europe in 1986 when we did the entire ‘Sacred Heart’ Tour in Europe and the UK. I think Ronnie whether he’s in Heaven or Hell, I think he would approve of what I did with his track. I’m proud just to be a very small thread in the huge tapestry that is Black Sabbath – the original iconic Heavy Metal band.
Mark: I loved the look on people’s faces when you played ‘Die Young’ it was a beautiful moment.
Ron: I love including those aspects of my career too, on the Australian Tour though I only got an hour to condense my career. I hope next time I come over I can do two hours.
Mark: You’d be more than welcome and I loved how you interacted with the fans. I saw you a few times walking through the venues and a couple of times at the Festival itself and one thing that I saw that made me realise the kind of guy you are is when anyone called your name out you’d always stop what you were doing or going where you were going and take time to talk to the fans. Every single time.
Ron: Absolutely Mark, those people are the reason that I’m there and they’ve all waited a very long time – 33 years or more for me to come to Australia! I love that time out there in the venue with the fans taking photos and shaking hands, sharing smiles and kind words from all those people who have loved my music over the years. And I’m a fan too, I love going out and watching the other bands, hanging out, having a beer and just being a part of the experience.
Mark: I think we were watching Midnite City when we first shook hands after many interviews over the years.
Ron: That’s right.
Mark: Coronavirus has affected us all, the last show up until last week I saw was when Kip Winger came to Perth a few days after the Festival. So three months later and we have live music back albeit with restrictions and reduced capacities. The big question is when do you get to play next?
Ron: My next show is July 3rd/4th. Obviously July 4th is a big holiday over here in the US and I’ve got a couple of solo acoustic shows. But we did our first Ron Keel band first full-blown concert this past weekend in Sioux City Iowa and it felt great to be back man. I have the best vantage point in the venue – I’ve got this great band behind me and this great audience in front of me and I’m right in-between all of that magic and energy. Centre stage man – it’s amazing, there’s nothing like it and I’m so glad to have it back. There was a time when we didn’t know, two months back we didn’t know how this would all unfold and we still aren’t sure how it will go into the future. But here in the States it depends where you are –if you’re in New York or California man I don’t know, but here in the Midwest where I live in the centre of the country it has been relatively untouched to a degree. The point where the hard working and the hard partying bikers and farmers and all the workers, they’re ready to get back out and have a good time and enjoy live music again but who knows? We have a lot of shows that are on the calendar in places like Chicago and Detroit and a couple in Ohio and some more in South Dakota and you have to put an asterisk next to them because at any time the venue might turn round and say “We better not, we’ll postpone those” So you never know and you just have to take every opportunity and realise it to it’s fullest potential. Because you don’t know what you’ve got till it’s gone man.
Mark: That’s so true.
Ron: I had the guys around at the house for rehearsals last week and we hadn’t played in months. So I had all of the guys at the house playing all day into the night and I’m listening to some of our previous concerts and music from ‘Fight Like a Band’ – songs that I haven’t done since the Australian Tour and just refreshing those tunes. So the past three weeks when we knew the gig was on, and there was a time when we weren’t sure if it was going to happen, so these last three weeks it’s been great just to focus on the band and the show and playing again. Making sure when we get back we deliver a great show. It’s great to get back out there but the real payoff is when you do it well. When you really deliver the goods.
Mark: Well let’s hope we get you back here soon too. Everyone I spoke to loved the show and we all want you back.
Ron: I sure hope so Mark. I remember our first tour of Japan in 1986 with Keel, We did our first headline sold out shows, every date was sold out before we got there and I remember every night telling the crowd that we’d see them next year, and we never went back. We never got the opportunity again. And that’s always stuck with me, because you never know what’s around the corner or what’s gonna happen in the future. So you have to treasure those times when you have them. When I left Australia and when we got on the plane and we were leaving Melbourne to go back to the States, I looked out of the window and I wondered if I would ever be able to come back there because it was such a beautiful memory – the people, the shows, the friends I made, the country. I stayed an additional week after the tour to enjoy the Country – we took the Great Ocean Road and went to the wildlife sanctuaries and the restaurants and the beach, just enjoying the Australian experience with my wife, and that was a fantastic memory. I’m so glad we got to do that and I hope that at some point I get to do it again. I will always be grateful for the reception and the welcome the Aussie fans gave me.
Mark: What a great way to end. Thank you so much Ron, stay safe and keep rocking!
Ron: Thank you so much Mark, I can’t thank you enough for all your support. And thanks to all the fans Downunder! Talk to you soon.
