Behind the Scenes with Carl Miller: You think Spinal Tap isn't real? Watch this!
Carl Miller(Led Zeppelin, Iron Maiden)
53:01•197 views
Veteran tour manager Carl Miller takes us behind the curtain of rock ’n’ roll, sharing extraordinary stories from a career that brought him into contact with Cat Stevens, Iron Maiden, Ginger Baker, Ringo Starr, Stevie Wonder, Led Zeppelin and many more.
Carl is the author and compiler of Backstage Chronicles, a collection of eyewitness accounts from the roadies, tour managers and backstage characters who kept the music business moving—often amid complete chaos.
In this interview, Carl recalls meeting Ringo Starr before The Beatles, helping Cat Stevens find the pianist who transformed “Morning Has Broken,” getting trapped in a lift with Steve McQueen, encountering Salvador Dalí and witnessing the strange world of fame from the other side of the curtain.
There are stories involving an East German border checkpoint, a disappearing Rolls-Royce, missing concert money, Stevie Wonder behind the wheel and the difficult responsibility of being the person expected to keep everything under control.
Backstage Chronicles is published by Astral Horizon Press.
ISBN: 9781739663025
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CHAPTERS
00:00 Introduction
01:16 Meeting Ringo Starr before The Beatles
02:10 The ’N Betweens, Slade and entering the music business
06:30 Why Carl compiled Backstage Chronicles
08:18 Was life on the road really like Spinal Tap?
11:30 A dangerous East German border crossing
14:00 Why tour managers need humour and diplomacy
17:55 Becoming Cat Stevens’ tour manager
20:50 “Morning Has Broken” and finding Rick Wakeman
24:30 Trapped in a lift with Steve McQueen
28:20 Meeting Salvador Dalí
33:45 Patti LaBelle and the personalities behind the fame
35:05 The disappearing Rolls-Royce
37:00 Led Zeppelin and the missing concert money
39:59 Tom Cruise before global fame
40:10 What fame does to people
43:55 Stevie Wonder behind the wheel
46:00 Why chaos made touring magical
49:00 Confrontations, loyalty and backstage diplomacy
50:50 Telling artists what they did not want to hear
52:35 Final thoughts
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