Schenker Apologises with a lame excuse and lies

[Shaun Ponsonby]

This is what happened:
When we started the US tour everything went well I think 11 shows but than it all fell apart. Our Tour manager left the Tour.
He had problems with our agent.
Our Bodyguard took over and then broke down too.
Franky our bass player came to me and said He is trying to run away with our money.
So I shouted, Someone call the Police, at that point he had put the safe back. By the way, all of this happened in our tour bus.
It started to get really bad. My girlfriend asked me if my tours are always like that.
I said no but for some reason it is happening. It really only happened once before, and that was when we had to cancel in Pala Alto in 2001.

Back to 2007, we were also waiting for our working visas for which our agent had taken 4,000 dollars out of our advance monies. Now our bodyguard left the tour as well because he hadn't been paid by our agent who was holding all advance monies from the venues. Our bus company had not been paid either and were warning us that they would pull out too, if they don't get paid soon and the band hadn't been paid either.

However, Wayne took over as the tour manager and when I looked at everything. Our situation, having lost our tour managing team, performing with out work permits, which I knew by than we would never get because our agent said that we wouldn't really need them that we could just say that this is a Promotional Tour or that we had spend all monies on exspenes.
That is totally crazy.
What would the immigration have thought about all the money that I would have brought in. It was clear to me that our Agent wanted to keep the money for the permits and that we would never get them. It was also clear that some people would have ended up without getting paid by the end of the Tour even if I would have paid for the permits it would have been totally unacceptable to continue the Tour under these conditions especially without a Tour manager.

So I paid 11,000 dollars out of my own pocket to pay everyone off including the Bus company and I told the Band, Go home before you get arrested. So we left the US. At that point I was pretty upset and began to drink more then usual.

We began our UK Tour. Without our usual Crew, I don't know why, and we had no Keyboards and no Guitars.
One problem rarely comes alone. It sucked.

Also what happened to:
• Frome - August 1st
• Stourbridge - August 3rd
• Nuneaton - August 4th
• Cardiff - August 5th ???????
Did it get canceled by the promoter? I don't know.
To make this disaster complete, I had 7,000 dollars stolen and basically got stranded in London.
My girlfriend was in Japan, the Band was at home and I was spending my last pounds in London until I was down to 2 Pounds.
I called the promoter
to pay for my train ticket to Peterborough. I got the ticket and traveled with my last 2 Pounds. The next show was supposed to be Peterborough, NO band. I decided to do a signing session and played on my own.

The band arrived at some point by than
I was drinking even more out of total frustration. I ended up drunk on stage and that was the end of it and that's what happened.
I am very upset about the cancellations and I hope that we can try again on a more professional level.
I tried my best.

And by the way, I had NO argument with my brother.

All the best,
Michael








The last part is a lie according to about 6 witnesses

[binnie]

Wow - the incoherent ramblings of a drunk.....

He clearly doesn't remember a lot of this.

What a waste.

[Hardrock69]

I do not care what he has to say.

Even when the shit hits the fan, getting drunk out of your mind in a situation like that is NOT the answer.

He seems to be too brain-dead to understand that.

Whatever. He gave us some great music, but I am writing him off as a fucking drunk has-been.

[jharp84]

You gotta be kiddin me! I think he is beyond hope!!

[Diamondjimi]

He's been crashing and burning his whole fucking career. He's always had bad management .

If he only had his brothers sense of business and self disipline ....

[Diamondjimi]

Hey , he could always join "The Other Half"...

Think about it . A steady paycheck and all the shitty boze he can drink!

;)

[Terry]

Sounds like a bunch of excuses -

So because his management situation and business contracts weren't the best, therefore it turns his playing into a drunken, sloppy mess?

Sad.

[Coyote]

Rudi should kick his ass a little bit more.

Might whip him back on track...

[Hardrock69]

Well, look.


Shit happens to him that would not EVEN happen to any normal human, under normal circumstances, UNLESS IT WAS YOUR OWN FUCKING FAULT AND YOU ARE A FUCKUP!!!
:mad:


I believe I posted over the past year or two about some interview he did where he said he was in Heathrow Airport some years ago and he just happened to LOSE HIS FUCKING GUITARS!!!
:mad:


Yeah...right....lose your fucking guitars....


Lose SEVEN THOUSAND DOLLARS....yeah fucking right you fucking loser motherfucker!!

NOBODY JUST 'LOSES' SEVEN THOUSAND FUCKING DOLLARS!!!
:mad:


I am done buying his product.

He is my no. 2 fave guitarist (#1 being Jimi Hendrix), but if all he is going to do is fuck his fucking career up (and the careers of anyone who plays in a band with him), then I wash my hands of this stupid bastard.

How many musicians have been in bands with him, only to set up their immediate future around tours he has booked or other money-paying gigs that these guys depend on for survival.....ONLY TO HAVE THIS WORTHLESS COCKSUCKER FUCK EVERYTHING UP?!?!?!?!?!?

I am on a roll today....I feel a bit more ruthless than usual... :D


And that is not including his road crew, whose importance in the grand scheme of thing is second ONLY to the FANS (in the artist's business model)!!!


HR Note: In my opinion, in the Music Industry food chain, The correct order of importance to the artist is as follows:
1. THE FANS
2. Road Crew
3. Lawyer
4. Manager
5. Business Manager
6. Booking Agent

1. The fans are your reason for being. Without their acceptance and/or love/hate for you, you are nothing. It is THEIR money that allows you to continue to perform for them. It is THEIR Money that puts food on your table, and it is THEIR Money that puts food on the table for the BAND AND CREW!

ARE YOU FUCKING LISTENING TO ME MIKEY YOU FUCKING DIPSHIT????!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?

:mad: :mad: :mad: :mad:

By fucking things up, and pissing off the fans, you are only fucking everyone whose livelihood depends on you.

Sure you are disappointing the fans, but that causes the cash flow to diminish to ZERO in a hurry, which means the cash flow into the road crew's pocketses comes to a grinding halt, when they have bills to pay and mouths to feed, most importantly their own.....

IF you choose to do business with people who are crooks or incompetent, as many managers and record label people are, YOU HAVE ONLY YOURSELF TO BLAME!

So you can fucking blather on and on and on about how it was everyone else's fault, but that is just refusing to accept responsibility for YOUR FUCKUP!!!!!


This is the same logic I have applied to statements about spEd too many times.


Fortunately, for the moment, he appears to be doing the right thing.

Though I bet the reason he hates bassplayer so much is because bassplayer probably gave him the same kind of speech when he was the drunk loser we have had to deal with for the past 22 years, and being as childish as he is, he still thinks bassplayer was in the wrong for telling him to get his shit together (a typical trait of alcoholic drug-abusers: DENIAL).

But I digress...

So anyway, MIKEY, the first step is to find people you can trust, and who will do you right business-wise.

Secondly, this means you have to DO RIGHT BY THEM AS WELL! If your manager is to be your manager, it only seems natural there must be 'something' to manage!

If YOU are going to refuse to work, if you are going to fuck stuff up, if you are going to be unreliable (as you are a PRO at being unreliable), then why fuck with other people lives by hiring them to begin with!?

If you hire them, they are trustworthy and see you as a valuable artist, and you work for/with them, they will work harder for you.

The organization is only as strong as it's weakest link, and if the artist is a fuckup, then the organization will FAIL.

I cannot see anyone wanting to do business with Michael Schenker.

He has fucked up his own reputation by being a dysfunctional fucktard ever since the mid-70s. I would think fucking up one's career over a period of 32 years or so would kill the career permanently. Mikey seems to have surprising resiliancey. No matter what he does to sabotage his career, he keeps coming back for more!
:rolleyes:

I cannot see anyone wanting to have anything to do with him artistically.

And I, as a fan, cannot continue to support an artist who is incompetent, and is only going to waste the time of those who depend on him for an income.


Oh well. It was a nice career.
:rolleyes:

[katie]

Originally posted by Hardrock69
Well, look.


Shit happens to him that would not EVEN happen to any normal human, under normal circumstances, UNLESS IT WAS YOUR OWN FUCKING FAULT AND YOU ARE A FUCKUP!!!
:mad:


I believe I posted over the past year or two about some interview he did where he said he was in Heathrow Airport some years ago and he just happened to LOSE HIS FUCKING GUITARS!!!
:mad:


Yeah...right....lose your fucking guitars....


Lose SEVEN THOUSAND DOLLARS....yeah fucking right you fucking loser motherfucker!!

NOBODY JUST 'LOSES' SEVEN THOUSAND FUCKING DOLLARS!!!
:mad:


I am done buying his product.

He is my no. 2 fave guitarist (#1 being Jimi Hendrix), but if all he is going to do is fuck his fucking career up (and the careers of anyone who plays in a band with him), then I wash my hands of this stupid bastard.

How many musicians have been in bands with him, only to set up their immediate future around tours he has booked or other money-paying gigs that these guys depend on for survival.....ONLY TO HAVE THIS WORTHLESS COCKSUCKER FUCK EVERYTHING UP?!?!?!?!?!?

I am on a roll today....I feel a bit more ruthless than usual... :D


And that is not including his road crew, whose importance in the grand scheme of thing is second ONLY to the FANS (in the artist's business model)!!!


HR Note: In my opinion, in the Music Industry food chain, The correct order of importance to the artist is as follows:
1. THE FANS
2. Road Crew
3. Lawyer
4. Manager
5. Business Manager
6. Booking Agent

1. The fans are your reason for being. Without their acceptance and/or love/hate for you, you are nothing. It is THEIR money that allows you to continue to perform for them. It is THEIR Money that puts food on your table, and it is THEIR Money that puts food on the table for the BAND AND CREW!

ARE YOU FUCKING LISTENING TO ME MIKEY YOU FUCKING DIPSHIT????!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?

:mad: :mad: :mad: :mad:

By fucking things up, and pissing off the fans, you are only fucking everyone whose livelihood depends on you.

Sure you are disappointing the fans, but that causes the cash flow to diminish to ZERO in a hurry, which means the cash flow into the road crew's pocketses comes to a grinding halt, when they have bills to pay and mouths to feed, most importantly their own.....

IF you choose to do business with people who are crooks or incompetent, as many managers and record label people are, YOU HAVE ONLY YOURSELF TO BLAME!

So you can fucking blather on and on and on about how it was everyone else's fault, but that is just refusing to accept responsibility for YOUR FUCKUP!!!!!


This is the same logic I have applied to statements about spEd too many times.


Fortunately, for the moment, he appears to be doing the right thing.

Though I bet the reason he hates bassplayer so much is because bassplayer probably gave him the same kind of speech when he was the drunk loser we have had to deal with for the past 22 years, and being as childish as he is, he still thinks bassplayer was in the wrong for telling him to get his shit together (a typical trait of alcoholic drug-abusers: DENIAL).

But I digress...

So anyway, MIKEY, the first step is to find people you can trust, and who will do you right business-wise.

Secondly, this means you have to DO RIGHT BY THEM AS WELL! If your manager is to be your manager, it only seems natural there must be 'something' to manage!

If YOU are going to refuse to work, if you are going to fuck stuff up, if you are going to be unreliable (as you are a PRO at being unreliable), then why fuck with other people lives by hiring them to begin with!?

If you hire them, they are trustworthy and see you as a valuable artist, and you work for/with them, they will work harder for you.

The organization is only as strong as it's weakest link, and if the artist is a fuckup, then the organization will FAIL.

I cannot see anyone wanting to do business with Michael Schenker.

He has fucked up his own reputation by being a dysfunctional fucktard ever since the mid-70s. I would think fucking up one's career over a period of 32 years or so would kill the career permanently. Mikey seems to have surprising resiliancey. No matter what he does to sabotage his career, he keeps coming back for more!
:rolleyes:

I cannot see anyone wanting to have anything to do with him artistically.

And I, as a fan, cannot continue to support an artist who is incompetent, and is only going to waste the time of those who depend on him for an income.


Oh well. It was a nice career.
:rolleyes:

Did somebody just fart?

[ThrillsNSpills]

Originally posted by Hardrock69
Well, look.


Shit happens to him that would not EVEN happen to any normal human, under normal circumstances..
How many musicians have been in bands with him, only to set up their immediate future around tours he has booked or other money-paying gigs that these guys depend on for survival.....ONLY TO HAVE THIS WORTHLESS COCKSUCKER FUCK EVERYTHING UP?!?!?!?!?!?



He quit UFO the first time because he didn't like the tone on Rock Bottom (Strangers in the Night version)
that album was the closest to breaking him in the states
(UFO's words from their live DVD with Vinnie Moore)
Schenker said he never made any money from his work (UFO and solo) until he released his Thank You CD under his own label.
He approached UFO and told them this and they subsequently released Walk on Water (which is a great album) under Schenker's label.
Things went well but again he bolted the tour when they hit Japan.

Off the record, how many people can you trust with finances when you're on the road?
He's made tons of albums anyway. I don't know how he pulled it off with all the drama and things that happened, and yes the people he surrounded himself with.
He cut some frightening solos in his day though.

[Hardrock69]

I will not deny he is a great guitarist.

That is why I am so pissed off at him.

[bueno bob]

Typical Mike Schenker shit.

[jharp84]

Good to see you t'n's & bb back in the saddle! MSG - who the fuck will ever know the REAL DEAL??? THIS IS AS BIZARRE AS EDWARDO VH!!