<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Are Huey Lewis and the News a thing of the past?\u00a0 It depends on which source one looks at.\u00a0 One site proclaims \u201cHuey Lewis and the News are on tour in 2023-2024,\u201d while another states, \u201cThere are no concert dates for Huey Lewis scheduled in 2023.\u201d\u00a0 In a November 2022 interview with U.K.\u2019s <\/span>Express<\/span><\/i>, the 72 year old Lewis explained he has lost 80 percent of the hearing in his right ear. \u00a0 Diagnosed with Meniere\u2019s disease more than 25 years ago, Lewis stated he had\u00a0 symptoms of the affliction for ten years prior to that diagnosis:\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ve been having vertigo attacks for 35 years.\u00a0 Now my hearing still fluctuates.\u00a0 I measure it on a scale of 1 to 10.\u00a0 If it\u2019s six and I have hearing aids in, I can hear speech for sure, and I can hear the phone and TV ok.\u00a0 Can I sing?\u00a0 Maybe, but I can\u2019t book a rehearsal, because if it goes to two, then I can\u2019t hear anything.\u201d\u00a0 He went on to describe his condition as, \u201cA \u2018syndrome\u2019 more than a \u2018disease\u2019, which means [people] really don\u2019t know much about it.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Britain’s National Health Service (NHS) describes Lewis\u2019s symptoms as, \u201cAn inner ear condition causing sudden attacks of vertigo, tinnitus, pressure felt deep within the ear, and hearing loss.\u00a0 Vertigo is the term used to describe when the room feels as though it is spinning when it really is not.\u00a0 Tinnitus, which is another symptom of Meniere’s disease, is when you can hear a ringing noise inside of the ear that is not audible to other people.\u201d\u00a0 The late Alan Sheppard, NASA\u2019s first man in space, experienced similar symptoms that removed him from active flight status for many years.\u00a0 In his case, he was able to undergo a surgical procedure that corrected his condition and paved the way for him to walk on the Moon as part of the Apollo 14 mission.<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0In the later stage of their career, Huey Lewis and the News were playing some 75 dates per year and and as he described it, \u201cWe\u2019re not very prolific.\u00a0 We weren\u2019t in a hurry to record.\u201d\u00a0 Their last album came out in 2001 (<\/span>Plan B<\/span><\/i>) and they spent the next 19 years performing while slowly accumulating songs for a new album.\u00a0 That album, <\/span>Weather<\/span><\/i>, was completed in 2018 just before his hearing issues became debilitating.\u00a0 Huey\u2019s symptoms had come and gone irregularly, but on July 27, 2018, just before a show in Dallas, his hearing disappeared.\u00a0 The show (and the rest of the tour) was canceled and everything has been up in the air since.\u00a0 Most were surprised when <\/span>Weather<\/span><\/i> came out in 2020 and assumed things had improved, but as noted, the album had been in the can before his hearing went south in 2018.<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0As Lewis told <\/span>AARP Magazine<\/span><\/i> in August of 2021, \u201cI\u2019ve been to experts at the Mayo Clinic, Massachuesetts General, and the University of California in San Francisco, I\u2019ve tried all sorts of holistic stuff, from acupuncture to chiropractics to cranial massage to supplements and all kinds of herbs.\u00a0 Nothing seems to work.\u00a0 Zero.\u00a0 It\u2019s such a crazy inner-ear disorder.\u00a0 The first six months tormented me, but you can get used to anything.\u201d\u00a0 Huey feels fortunate because he says, \u201cI think, \u2018Wow, this could have happened years ago.\u2019\u00a0 I have to be grateful and I have to admit I\u2019m a lucky guy.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0If his hearing improves to a 6 out of 10 (he says it is about 4 now), he may be able to perform live again.\u00a0 In the meantime, \u201cI\u2019m a fly-fishing fanatic.\u00a0 I fly-fish all over the world.\u00a0 I\u2019m not conventionally a religious person, but I believe the closest I ever get to God is through Mother Nature.\u00a0 When you\u2019re fly-fishing, your senses are so attuned to nature, and you\u2019re connecting more deeply.\u00a0 It is a wonderful feeling.\u201d\u00a0 Lewis currently lives on a ranch near Stevensville, Montana which he considers his permanent residence, but what about the rest of the band?<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Original bassist Mario Cipollina was hard to miss with his trademark dark shades and the ever present cigarette hanging from his lips.\u00a0 He cultivated this brooding persona as a member of the band from 1979 to 1995 and reportedly left because he was tired of the touring grind. \u00a0 Mario remains active in the San Francisco music scene to this day playing with a variety of bands.\u00a0 He spent some time during his News days playing with his guitarist\/brother John as a sometimes member of\u00a0 Quicksilver Messenger Service (John passed away from a chronic health disorder in 1989). \u00a0 There was less information available on second guitarist\/sax player Johnny Colla and keyboard player Sean Hopper.\u00a0 Both are still active in the Bay area music biz keeping busy doing their own musical projects and session work.<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Drummer Bill Gibson was also an original member of The News.\u00a0 When Lewis\u2019s previous band, Clover, ended, a group of musicians began a weekly jam at a Marin County bar called Uncle Charlies.\u00a0 If you have seen the video for <\/span>The Power of Love<\/span><\/i> single, then you have seen the place as it is featured prominently in the video.\u00a0 As the band started to gel, they became Huey Lewis and the American Express with Sean Hopper on keys and Johnny Colla on guitar and Sax.<\/span><\/p>\n They toured under that name and early efforts recorded with the new lineup were not exactly successful.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0The band signed with Chrysalis Records after Pablo Cruise manager Bob Brown heard their demo and helped them land a deal with the label.\u00a0 Chrysalis feared the American Express credit card company would object to the name, thus they became Huey Lewis and the News in 1980.\u00a0 Their first self-titled album escaped notice but their 1982 sophomore effort, <\/span>Picture This <\/span><\/i>got more traction due to the single <\/span>Do You Believe in Love<\/span><\/i> that had been written by producer Mutt Lange when he worked with Clover.\u00a0 For some reason, the suits at Chrysalis kept pressuring Lewis to replace Gibson on the drums but Huey stood firm for his friend and bandmate:\u00a0 \u201cNo Bill, no Huey Lewis and the News,\u201d was how he put it to the powers that be.<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0About the time the band was making the switch to Chrysalis, guitarist Chris Hayes auditioned for the band.\u00a0 In an interview with <\/span>Guitar World <\/span><\/i>magazine (Vol. 44, No. 5 – May 2023), he said it was a departure for him.\u00a0 Hayes recalled, \u201cI used to be a real jazz snob.\u00a0 That is all I listened to, and I thought everything else was inferior.\u00a0 Mike Stern blew me away.\u00a0 I was way into John Scofield.\u00a0 That\u2019s the level I aspired to.\u201d\u00a0 He was playing in multiple bands for less than stellar wages when the call came to audition for the News:\u00a0 \u201cI just kind of fell into it. I got lucky.\u00a0 I lived next door to this lady who said, \u2018I know this guy who needs a guitar player.\u00a0 Are you interested in auditioning?\u2019\u00a0 I went in and remember I was looking down at my fingers the whole time.\u00a0 Huey said, \u2018He plays really well but we have to work on his image.\u2019\u00a0 I wasn\u2019t much of a performer at the time.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Watching video of Hayes on stage could make one doubt that last statement, but he gives Lewis the credit for showing him the ropes on how to become a better performer.\u00a0 When the offer to join The News came around, Hayes thought it was a great opportunity to break out of the fifty bucks a night gigs he had been chasing:\u00a0 \u201cHuey and the band were going places, so it felt like a good situation.\u00a0 I learned a lot from Huey.\u00a0 He got me to start performing more, got me into putting on a show and jumping around.\u00a0 He built up my confidence.\u00a0 I give him a lot of credit for that.\u00a0 He changed my onstage persona.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0As the band transitioned from a hard rocking bar band to a mainstream radio juggernaut pumping out platinum selling hits, Chris proved to be more than just an energetic presence on stage.\u00a0 Hayes proved his worth on stage adding what writer Joe Bosso calls, \u201cInsanely catch riffs and punch, adventurous solos to the group\u2019s rapidly growing number of knockout hits.\u00a0 [Hayes] also proved to be an ace songsmith.\u00a0 Among the tracks that bear his name are <\/span>Workin\u2019 for a Livin\u2019, I Want a New Drug, <\/span><\/i>and the Oscar nominated <\/span>The Power of Love<\/span><\/i> (written for the blockbuster film <\/span>Back to the Future<\/span><\/i>, it was the first of the group\u2019s songs to hit Number 1 on <\/span>Billboard\u2019s <\/span><\/i>Hot 100).\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cThat was a magical time for us,\u201d Hayes says.\u00a0 \u201cWe sold out two nights at Madison Square Garden, and then we were nominated for an Oscar.\u00a0 Richard Dreyfuss sat next to me at the Academy Awards ceremony.\u00a0 I tried to say something to him, but he ignored me.\u00a0 Other than that, it was incredible.\u201d\u00a0 With the rise of hip-hop and grunge, the band no longer commanded the airways or charts and their album releases grew spotty.\u00a0 By 2001, Hayes made the decision it was time to get off the road.<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0He told Bosso, \u201cMy motivations for leaving were personal.\u00a0 I had a son who I didn\u2019t see that much because I was traveling.\u00a0 Then I got a divorce and stopped drinking – things had gotten out of hand.\u00a0 When I hit 42 and started a new family, I decided I wanted to be present for my children.\u00a0 Being on the road with a band is no way to raise kids,\u00a0 It was time to change everything, so I did.\u201d\u00a0 He and his current wife split their time between Reno, Nevada and Springfield, Oregon.\u00a0 He picks up a guitar when he feels like it and like his band brother Huey, he does a lot of fishing.<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Hayes doesn\u2019t feel the need to write a book telling the tale of his road warrior days, nor does he have anything negative to say about his former bandmates:\u00a0 \u201cI love them all.\u201d\u00a0 No sordid tales of debauchery or tell all, bridge burning stories come from his lips.\u00a0 Chris never ruled out rejoining the band or doing a couple of reunion gigs, but with Huey\u2019s hearing problems, neither of those options are on the table at present.\u00a0 Hayes says, \u201cThe situation with Huey\u2019s hearing is really unfortunate, but you know, if he called me tomorrow and said, \u2018My hearings better.\u00a0 Do you want to do a reunion?\u2019 I\u2019d probably say yes.\u00a0 I like Huey.\u00a0 He\u2019s a great friend.\u00a0 We talk on the phone about fishing – we have that in common.\u00a0 It\u2019s so funny.\u00a0 Back in the day, we talked about music.\u00a0 Now it\u2019s fishing.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Chris isn\u2019t afraid to admit his life had kind of spun out of control.\u00a0 In answer to the question, \u201cWas drinking a big issue?\u201d, he responded, \u201cThat was an issue.\u00a0 I became a Christian, and drinking just wasn\u2019t conducive to my lifestyle.\u00a0 On the road, I found myself drinking when I didn\u2019t even want to.\u00a0 I am not bagging on people who drink, but for me, it wasn\u2019t working anymore.\u00a0 It was fun while it lasted [laughs].\u00a0 I certainly had lots of fun, but after a while you have to decide when enough is enough.\u00a0 I spent about five years touring with the band, and I was completely sober.\u00a0 That was a little strange, then I went back to drinking after being sober for five years.\u00a0 That is when I said, \u2018If I keep doing this, it\u2019s not going to get better.\u2019\u00a0 I left the band for personal reasons.\u00a0 It had nothing to do with the rest of the guys.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Bosso asked Hayes to explain his input on a few of their hits like <\/span>I Want a New Drug<\/span><\/i>.\u00a0 Chris explained, \u201cI kind of fashioned it after <\/span>Workin\u2019 for a Livin\u2019<\/span><\/i>.\u00a0 That song was something of a success, so I said, \u2018I\u2019m gonna write a song like it.\u2019\u00a0 I came up with that bouncy guitar riff, and that was that.\u00a0 It was actually super easy;\u00a0 it came right out.\u201d\u00a0 As for the latitude Lewis gave him in constructing solos, Hayes recalled, \u201cHuey was great.\u00a0 He gave me a lot of leeway on solos.\u00a0 He always \u2018got\u2019 me.\u00a0 He knew what he wanted out of me, and he did it in a very gracious way.\u00a0 A lot of times we\u2019d try a guitar solo, but sometimes we\u2019d listen to it and go, \u2018No, it needs the sax there\u2019.\u201d\u00a0 Having a second guitar player and skilled sax player like Colla in the band certainly gave them a variety of ways to do their arrangements.<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Hayes told Bosso working in the News was very democratic.\u00a0 He described Huey as \u2018the benevolent dictator\u2019 but not in a negative sense:\u00a0 \u201cHuey could be tough, but he had to herd cats, and that wasn\u2019t always easy.\u201d\u00a0 One song Chris didn\u2019t cotton to at first was <\/span>Hip to be Square<\/span><\/i>:\u00a0 \u201cThe lyrics are a little cutesy, so I can see why some people are turned off.\u00a0 It took me a while to say, \u2018It\u2019s a good song.\u2019\u00a0 Maybe it\u2019s because I\u2019m old now [laughs].\u00a0 Now I actually like it.\u00a0 The video we did was killer.\u00a0 It\u2019s the kind of song that they like to put in commercials.\u00a0 It\u2019s had a life.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0What does a former high profile rock star do when they decide enough is enough?\u00a0 Hayes noted a lot has happened in his life since he left the road:\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ve raised a family and have been to a lot of soccer games.\u00a0 Careers in music have\u00a0 definite periods, and I think I left the band just at the right time.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0In one of those happy accidents of concert bookings, Huey Lewis and the News played a gig at Lakeview Arena in Marquette in the summer of 1984.\u00a0 We attended that show and wondered if the band was hyped that their <\/span>Sports<\/span><\/i> album had just gone to Number 1 on the charts.\u00a0 It isn\u2019t very often that a small market concert town like Marquette can land the top selling band in the land but it happened with the News.\u00a0 Huey didn\u2019t brag on it, but he did make mention of it during their show.\u00a0 I rarely rank concerts I have seen because I pretty much like all live music.\u00a0 In this case, I will go out on a limb and say this show would be in my top five.<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0I can relate a bit to his hearing problems.\u00a0 In the mid-1980s, I came down with a virus and ended up seeing a specialist when the hearing in my left ear did not come back.\u00a0 After ruling out something more serious like a tumor, he said, \u201cA virus can do that.\u00a0 Some people lose their sense of taste.\u00a0 You lost the low and middle frequencies you can hear with your left ear.\u201d\u00a0 At the time there was no solution to my problem, but perhaps it is time to get it re-evaluated.\u00a0 I find it hard to follow conversations when there is a lot of background noise.\u00a0 On the plus side, and much to the dismay of my students, I got pretty good at lip-reading to compensate.\u00a0 Kids were often amazed I knew what they were gossiping about in the back row well out of earshot.<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0It is sad to hear Huey Lewis and the News as we knew them might be done.\u00a0 On the other hand, it is good to hear that Lewis and Hayes are still living a good life and have accepted the fact that they had a good run and wouldn\u2019t change a thing.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Top Piece ‘Video:\u00a0 Speaking of\u00a0The Power of Love . . .<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Are Huey Lewis and the News a thing of the past?\u00a0 It depends on which source one looks at.\u00a0 One site proclaims \u201cHuey Lewis and the News are on tour in 2023-2024,\u201d while another states, \u201cThere are no concert dates for Huey Lewis scheduled in 2023.\u201d\u00a0 In a November 2022 interview with U.K.\u2019s Express, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3,8,6,9],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2809","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-bands-musicians","category-from-the-vaults","category-new-music","category-woas"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.woas-fm.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2809","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.woas-fm.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.woas-fm.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.woas-fm.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.woas-fm.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2809"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.woas-fm.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2809\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2812,"href":"https:\/\/www.woas-fm.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2809\/revisions\/2812"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.woas-fm.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2809"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.woas-fm.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2809"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.woas-fm.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2809"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}