This will be the new title header div He's the Bass Player for The Atomic Punks,  Eller: What was the first Concert you ever attended? Lester: I always talk about the first three I saw, because they were all completely different. The first was in Alaska. It was Triumph with Saga opening up. Very classic rock/metal, not much to write home about, but very cool to finally experience it. The second was Spinal Tap at the Bumbershoot festival in Seattle. I didn't know anything about them except that Lenny (from Laverne and Shirley) was in the band and the metal station up there played a song called "Christmas with the Devil." It was a free concert, so we checked it out. I remember that when they started playing "Gimme some Money," the crowd started throwing loose change at the stage. I thought they were going to cancel the show. The third was Loudness with Keel opening up. That was such a cool experience, finally getting to see a couple bands that I was hip to and my first taste of the LA metal scene. That was the beginning of it right there... What was the first Album you ever bought? The first rock album I bought was VH II on cassette. Then the next one was "Back in Black" on 8-Track so I could listen to it in my dad's truck. How old were you when you heard your first Van Halen song? Which song was it, and what was it about the band and music that you liked? I was 10, a buddy of mine turned me on to Ozzy, after that, I started listening to the local metal station. The first song I remember was "Beautiful Girls" that's why I bought VH II. I loved the guitar and the words to the song, and the way Dave was singing it. What is your favorite Van Halen song and why? It's really hard to pick. I think that Mean Street and Unchained capture what the band is all about. Killer guitar intro, pounding rhythm section, great sassy vocals, those harmonies, middle section only like VH could do it and a great guitar solo. Both those songs have all of that, but there are so many great ones. Hard question. Is that to listen to or to play or both? Both,two of my favorites to listen to and I'm always happy when I see those two songs on the set list. We play Unchained pretty much every show, so I'm always pushing Ralph for Mean Street. When we are in the dressing room writing the set list, sometimes Ralph will get stuck and say "hey Joe, give me a song for the set." I always suggest "Mean Street" first, and by now he almost knows it's coming every time. What is your favorite VH album? <p class="lester"Favorite, I love all of them (we are talking DLR era right??) The Sammy stuff is great, but we only really talk about the DLR stuff. ha ha. I think the first one is the best and most complete. Every song is devastating. I can just imagine all of the other bands during that era shitting their pants the first time they heard it and going uh oh...
How did you start playing? How long have you been playing? I started on Trumpet when I was 10, moved to Baritone horn the next year and started guitar when I was 14. Played in Concert/Jazz/and Marching band all through high school. When I was 18 I switched to bass, our band at the time was a 2 guitar band and our bass player left. Since I was the rhythm guitar player, I switched to bass. I got really into it, but when I moved to LA in 1989 I started to explore the guitar again. Then I met Darren Housholder and tried taking guitar lessons. He thought that since I was good at rhythm guitar, I might have a better shot at a career playing bass. Boy was he right, I just thanked him last week again for that. When I finally went back to bass, I didn't pick up a guitar for almost 8 years. I'm so glad I play bass, it's such secret weapon in a band. So there you go. I've been playing music for 24 years, guitar for 8 and full time bass for about 15. Who are your influences? Top 5:
What was the first Van Halen song you learned to play? It was on the bass, I could never play that stuff on the guitar. We did Eruption in my High School Sophomore year talent show, so I learned the intro part to the solo, that was my first VH song, if that counts. For my Punks audition, it was in 1994, I honestly don't remember, I think we played Panama. I came across some video footage of those first rehearsals we did, it's pretty amazing to look back at. How did you get started in the Music business? What Other jobs have you had? I got started playing in cover bands, networking and meeting people in other groups that always ended up helping in some way or another. I was a janitor in high school, waiter, construction worker and a Bartender. Once I started Bartending, that was it. No other jobs. It's the second easiest way to get girls besides being in a band. Have you written/recorded original music? If so, where can we hear it? I had a band called California and we released a self-titled record back in 2001 on Trauma records. I don't think you can find it in stores anymore. The band broke up last year in early 2002. Every once in a while I'll see a copy in a used CD store. What do you like to do in your spare time? Play Ice Hockey, watch sports, work on the computer Is music your full-time job? If not, what do you do as a "day job"? I thank the universe every day that music is my only job. It's been my full-time work since 1996, that's all I could have ever asked for, and I'm very fortunate. Tell us about your other Bands/Projects. There's really no other bands or projects right now, I really got burnt-out on the original music scene and the music business after California broke up. But I'm always open to new ideas. How did you come to know Ralph/Join the Punks? A guitar buddy of mine named Darren Housholder told me that a friend of his (Bart Walsh) had a VH cover band that was looking for a bass player. Knowing what a huge Michael Anthony fan I was, he thought I'd be perfect. So I went to their 3rd show at FM Station and sat there with my jaw in my lap for and hour and a half and said to myself that I had to be in that band. After the show, I introduced myself to the guys, they were all really nice. They had auditions shortly there after, I don't know how many people, but Bart called me and said they wanted me to play with them. That was July of '94, by October, I played my first show in San Diego on a Friday and the next night at FM Station in N. Hollywood. We made fifty bucks a piece and were on the road for two days, I was in heaven...woo hoo. The rest is history. Funny side note to Ralph...when I had only been in LA about a year, I saw him at the Troubador for the first time. I went to see some other friends of mine open up for his band Longgone. So while I was talking to my friends at the bar after their show, I heard this band playing behind me that sounded pretty good, I turned around to watch and there was Ralph. I remember thinking to myself, why isn't this guy a huge rock star right now. He was amazing!! So I watched the rest of their show, and at the end, I told myself that when I put together my own band, he was going to be the singer. About 3 years later, I go to see the Punks and there he is. Well, we ended up in a band together, kind of weird how things work sometimes. Have you met any of the members of Van Halen? I met DLR at a strip club called Crazy Girls in Hollywood the night that our band California signed our first record deal. He was so damn cool. He sat and talked to me and our drummer Max for about 45 minutes about music, life, and everything else. You would have never known that there were half-naked chicks everywhere, he looked at us the whole time and gave us his full attention, and I thought that was so damn cool. I met Michael for the first time at the Viper Room about a week before he came out to the House of Blues show. I told him it's about time that we finally meet, and what a huge musical influence he's been, and what an honor it is to play his bass parts all of the time. He was really cool. Then, at the House of Blues, it was unbelievable, it was a total party, we took a lot of pictures, listened to stories about the old VH days, and drank a lot. I would love to go to a bar with him 1-on-1 and just shoot the shit sometime, or take him to my secret family fishing spots in Alaska, that would be awesome. I met Sammy in an airport when I was 14, he was so cool and nice to me that my grandma thought he was someone I knew from high school. In Van Halen, Mikey is known for his high pitched yelps... can you do that? I can do it, just not full voice like he does, my backgrounds are softer because I sing it all falsetto. When he played with us, it seemed to me like he was doing all of that stuff full-voice...unbelievable. He's so underrated. It's definitely the hardest part of the show, singing those high parts, I'm the harshest critic of myself, I want to do it perfect every time, but man it's really tough. You're kind of the "silent member" of The Punks, like Mikey with Van Halen. Is this your Mikey to Ralph's Dave, or is that the real Joe? It's not on purpose, I've never been the outspoken one, in any situation. In this band, I know my place. I always kind of sit back and look everything over, watch and listen. There is a crazy side though, get a few beers in me and I'll talk your head off. I really appreciate meeting new people, you never know what impact someone can have on your life. Ralph dresses up like DLR, Russ wears a wig to look like Eddie. Would you consider growing a mullet to resemble Mikey? Any plans to acquire a Jack Daniels and/or Tabasco bass? I told Mike to hook me up with a Jack Daniels bass. The look thing is what it is. What is the identifying outfit for Mike?? I think the flight suit that he wore on the Fair Warning tour. So that's what I wear, once in a while you'll see me wear a t-shirt and jeans, maybe let my beard grow a little, but that's about it. Ralph happens to look similar to Dave, especially with the costume. Russ puts on the wig and overalls and it's scary. He has the same body as Eddie. That just happened, it's freaky sometimes. But Scott and I are not going to change our hair and what not. It doesn't make that much difference. But the Dave and Eddie have to be right on, and Ralph and Russ trip me out sometimes, I'll look at Russ from the side or behind, and it looks like Eddie standing there. Russ wears the wig because he likes having really short hair. If you remember, Brian only wore the wig till he grew his hair back out, and it didn't matter when he took the wig off. Ok, let's do a little "word association." I'll give you a word/thought, you tell me the first thing (word/phrase/thought/concept/reaction/etc.) that comes to your mind. Van Halen - The best full throttle hard rock band ever. Michael Anthony - Coolest bass player in music, unfortunately very underrated. A monster on stage. Eddie Van Halen - Nothing that hasn't been said before. God on the guitar. The ultimate. Ralph Saenz - The nicest, greatest guy. Absolutely sick, charismatic, and pro singer. Sings 6 nights a week, I've never heard him hit a bad note in 10 years. Russ Parrish - Alien on guitar, he is the most effortless and amazing guitarist I've ever played with. He can do anything and play any style on the spot. I seen him pull stuff out on stage, on the spot that will just make you shake your head. Also, one of the funniest guys I've ever met. Great Rob Halford stories. David Lee Roth - Greatest front man in Rock history. Nobody comes close. Sammy Hagar - Unbelievable singer, just as good now as he was back in the day. Met him when I was 14 in the Palm Springs airport and he was so cool. Gary Cherone - I really like Extreme, the Queen medley they did at the Freddy Mercury tribute concert was one of the coolest things I've ever seen. Also, when he opened for Metal Shop, they started spoofing on "More Than Words" and He started walking across the table tops trying to get to the stage and one of them gave way, he ate it big time, right next to me. I thought he was going to be hurt bad, but he got up and sang, the crowd went nuts. Brian Young - I've known Brian almost as long as the rest of the Punks, I consider him a really special friend, and an all around great guy. Unbelievable guitar player, and deserves all of the success in the world. Two words...Joey Delight!! James Lomenzo - Don't know him, but I respect his playing. The only solid member of White Lion. Saw him play with Zakk [Wylde] years ago and was blown away. Scott Patterson - The best drummer in Rock n' Roll. I've played with a lot of great drummers, but Scott is insane. He's a rock every show. I remember the first time that I realized that he is so good that he doesn't even practice anymore, just sets up and plays. That was back in 1994. He's funny as hell, we have so much fun egging each other on during shows and he's my roommate on the road. Billy Sheehan - Oh man, the first DLR solo tour is still the greatest rock concert I've ever seen. What an amazing player. Cool guy, He's jammed with us a few times. The Whiskey-A-Go-Go - Really cool place to see a show. What is your favorite memory from a Live show? Too many to recount, but last year's FakeFest in Pittsburgh was pretty awesome, it was Russ's second show, It was shitty weather and about 6,000 people going crazy. Also, the Colorado Avalanche game. Stanley Cup playoffs in Colorado at the Pepsi Center, we were playing in between periods, and we had awesome seats for the game. X-Fest in Wisconsin, 30,000 or so kids there to see the current, heavy, tattooed bands, we come out in our shiny/colorful outfits and totally destroyed that crowd. 14 and 15 year old kids who probably didn't even know who VH was. The organizers said we were the only band in three years of that festival to have the crowd chanting for an encore, it was great!! Lazerfest in Iowa last year, pretty much the same thing. We were in between some heavy new band and Stone Sour. Totally had the crowd going nuts. It's great to show these young kids that metal used to be about jumping around, guitar solos, and being a charismatic band. And to see that they can still dig it is cool.  Also, Zakk Wylde coming out to the Whiskey and jamming Crazy Train with us, then sitting backstage drinking and bullshitting all night. Michael Anthony at the House of Blues. There's too many, and that's just with the Punks... What is your happiest memory as a bass player in general? Playing live, being a full time musician, getting signed to my first recording contract, and fulfilling most of the goals that I set for myself in music. I love meeting musicians that I looked up to as a kid and hanging out with them at our shows. What's the weirdest/funniest thing that has happened during a show? this would take too long for me to answer.... Are any other VH Tribute bands out there that you guys (the Punks) are..... well 'afraid of' is the wrong word but kinda like 'Oh those fuckers are good we better watch our shit' type thing. Nope...you might be able to get 4 musicians together that could do it as good, but not better. I believe that with any band, not just VH bands. Ralph is the ultimate guy, you can't replace him. The three of us could be replaced, Ralph can't. Besides Ralph, the only guy who has played every AP show is Scott. Are there any drawbacks to playing in a tribute band? The only thing that I wish we could do would be to go to Europe or Japan. VH was big in S. America. I would like to go on tour with these guys, in a bus for a few months, headline arenas, but realistically, that's not going to happen. I'm sure you have met a lot of "big names" in your musical career. Of all of them, who is the one that you still go "Wow! I can't believe I actually met _____!" ? David Lee Roth If you couldn't be a musician, what would you want to be? Ice Hockey player in the NHL. Are the you single or married? Kids? Never married, no kids yet. My girlfriend Christy and I have been together 4 and a half years. What would most folks be most surprised to know about Joe Lester? That I'm originally from an island in Alaska called Kodiak. When most people hear of living in Alaska, especially when you use names like "Kodiak" they think Snow, Dog Sleds, Igloos, Eskimos, etc. is that accurate? Yeah, that's a common thing, especially when I first moved to Seattle, all of the kids in school wanted to know what it was like to live in an igloo. Anchorage gets a lot of snow, but Kodiak is pretty mild, lots of rain. You have to remember that if you overlaid Alaska on top of a map of the US, north to south would cover from Texas to Minnesota. Most of the Igloos and what not are in the northern part of the state. Do you still have family in Alaska, or are you strictly "California" now? <grin> Until recently, all of my family on my fathers side was still in Alaska, but in the last year it's about 50% of them are still there now. What's in your CD Player right now? Lately I've been rotating
What book(s) are you currently reading? Who is/are your favorite author(s)? I have never been a big reader, I usually read Rolling Stone, and some different recording magazines. That's about it. My favorite author, have to be Anthony Robbins (self help guru) Anything else you'd like to add? Thanks to everyone who comes to our shows and supports us, we really appreciate it. We are glad that we can make peoples weekends fun. Thanks for the interview.... Thanks Joe!Photos Contributed by Joe Lester, Albert R. and Jeff Findley | ||||
