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Stephen Demorest

Stephen Demorest

Stephen Demorest wrote for Circus, Creem, Phonograph Record and Rolling Stone in the 1970s. He later worked on soap operas such as Guiding Light, All My Children and General Hospital.

45 articles

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Eric Clapton's Night of Stars — Inside the Rainbow Concert LP

Report by Stephen Demorest, Circus, November 1973

For two years, the solitary guitar-master slowly faded into the rock landscape, but thanks to Peter Townshend and a constellation of British stars, the legend is soaring back to his place in the heavenly firmament. ...

The Rolling Stones: Jagger's Goats Head Soup Jumps Back Into Music

Report and Interview by Stephen Demorest, Circus, November 1973

When the Jamaican moon started turning the tide in Jagger's bloodstream, he left the tame world of the international Jet Set up in the air. ...

Elton John: Goodbye Yellow Brick Road — Elton John Rockets Over The Rainbow

Interview by Stephen Demorest, Circus, December 1973

Running up against Evil Alice and The Rolling Stones, the good spell-caster fights to be head wizard in the Emerald City of rock. ...

David Bowie: Bowie Salutes the Sixties' Stars

Report and Interview by Stephen Demorest, Circus, December 1973

Aiming for his first musical, he abandoned the rock emporiums as quickly as he had arrived. But first, with a fine sense of etiquette, the ...

Lou Reed Stuns Listeners with the Horrifying Story of Berlin

Report and Interview by Stephen Demorest, Circus, December 1973

Confronted by the velvet shadow-master's terrifying movie without pictures, one employee ran from the studio in tears, Julie Christie stayed up all night talking about ...

Uriah Heep: The Tour That Detoured The Demons

Interview by Stephen Demorest, Circus Raves, January 1974

Scarcely a year ago, the Heep found America filled with threatening crazies, and went scurrying back to England with culture-shock. But a new look at ...

Pink Floyd, Syd Barrett: A Nice Pair — The Pink Floyd LPs That Failed

Overview by Stephen Demorest, Circus, February 1974

They finally became stars on their ninth album, The Dark Side of the Moon, but they were first led around to the dark side of the psyche ...

Allman Brothers Band, David Bowie, Jefferson Starship, Mott The Hoople, The Rolling Stones: The Rock Lovers

Report and Interview by Stephen Demorest, Circus, February 1974

Being a rock star has its advantages, but the spotlight is usually only big enough for one person. Circus took a behind stage look at ...

Steve Miller: The Joker — Steve Miller Draws a Wild Card

Profile and Interview by Stephen Demorest, Circus Raves, March 1974

For years Lady Luck smiled on the heavy rollers. But working hard and playing the percentages, the veteran blues guitarist came up with a royal ...

Maggie Bell, Led Zeppelin: Led Zeppelin Erect A Kingdom

Report by Stephen Demorest, Circus, March 1974

For months they've laid low in the recording studios preparing their sixth album. But suddenly the whole world was watching as the Christmas season brought them a ...

Seals and Crofts: Seals & Crofts: Hotbed Of Controversy — 'Unborn Child'

Interview by Stephen Demorest, Circus Raves, April 1974

They became soft rock's #1 duo on the strength of pretty music and sweet lyrics, but when a Strawberry blonde delivered her anti-abortion poem to ...

Carl Palmer, Emerson Lake And Palmer: ELP's Carl Palmer Exposes The Secret Drum Synthesizer Behind Brain Salad Surgery

Interview by Stephen Demorest, Circus, June 1974

After years of drumming in a variety of hard rocking bands, Carl Palmer decided there had to be more to playing than simply marking time. ...

Roxy Music: An Imperial Roxy Music Move To Rule The World

Profile and Interview by Stephen Demorest, Circus, February 1975

Led by a debonair Disraeli of modern music, Roxy are the most powerful new force out of Britain since David Bowie. Can County Life charm America too? ...

Yes Battles The Skeptics With Relayer

Profile and Interview by Stephen Demorest, Circus, February 1975

Stabilized by their Swiss replacement for the seemingly indispensible Rick Wakeman, a nervy Yes have cracked into yet another album of epic proportions. Will Relayer ...

Brian Eno, John Cale, Nico: Eno: The Monkey Wrench Of Rock Creates Happy Accidents On Tiger Mt.

Profile and Interview by Stephen Demorest, Circus, April 1975

One day Eno is going to formulate a theory that will make music melt out of the North Pole (maybe he'll do it with mirrors), ...

Led Zeppelin: The Circus Magazine Interview — Robert Plant: 'I've Always Flown The Jolly Roger, But With A Twisted Smile'

Interview by Stephen Demorest, Circus, June 1975

ROBERT PLANT is rock 'n roll's definitive front man, a lion-maned athlete and beauty who struts and sings the wares of the world's mightiest band, ...

David Essex: Danger In The Fairground

Interview by Stephen Demorest, Circus, 20 January 1976

"I'VE ALWAYS gone against trying to be something I'm not," says David Essex, the British pop idol who is lounging in a suite of Coventry's ...

Aerosmith: Hot 'Rocks'

Interview by Stephen Demorest, Circus, 17 June 1976

Aerosmith's New Yankee Hanky-Panky ...

Andy Pratt: Avenging Andy Rides Again

Interview by Stephen Demorest, Circus, 24 August 1976

THREE YEARS AGO, Andy Pratt had bats in his belfry. Flutter, flutter -you could hear the unrequited passions playing hide-and-go-seek in his psyche. ...

Rufus: The Truth About Rufus

Interview by Stephen Demorest, Circus, 13 September 1976

"I Hate The Blues!" Snaps Chaka Khan. ...

Television: CBGBs, New York NY

Live Review by Stephen Demorest, New York Daily News, 29 December 1976

Television, but not TV ...

Lou Reed: Rock and Roll Heart (Arista)

Review by Stephen Demorest, Creem, January 1977

OH, BUSHWAH. I liked Lou's last album, Coney Island Baby, for its integrity, combativeness, and character, but Rock and Roll Heart flashes none of these qualities. ...

Stuff: Bottom Line, New York NY

Live Review by Stephen Demorest, New York Daily News, 1 January 1977

The Stuff stars are made of ...

The Bee Gees: The Tide Has Turned

Interview by Stephen Demorest, Circus, 31 January 1977

From Their Home on the Isle of Man, the Bee Gees Return ...

Thin Lizzy: Johnny the Fox (Mercury)

Review by Stephen Demorest, Circus, 28 February 1977

THIN LIZZY live and die by a sometimes ingenuous, sometimes embarrassing bravura. They are a strong, quick, and occasionally clever band, and on their four ...

The Eagles: Hotel California (Asylum)

Review by Stephen Demorest, Circus, 17 March 1977

LISTEN, I'M willing to believe these guys are trying. I'm just glad I'm not buying. Don't you become one of their statistics, either. Hotel California ...

Iggy Pop: From Russia with Love: Bowie's Iggy

Profile and Interview by Stephen Demorest, Phonograph Record, April 1977

"You got a personality crisis,You got it while it was hot But now frustration and heartache is what you got... Personality, when your mind starts to ...

Fleetwood Mac: Rumours (Warner Bros.)

Review by Stephen Demorest, Creem, May 1977

SURE, THIS album deserves platinum status a much as the next Kiss LP, but frankly there's only one cut that really sends me – 'Dreams', ...

Television: More Than Just A Boob Tube

Interview by Stephen Demorest, Creem, May 1977

VENUS: The oldest song on Television's Marquee Moon album is about the arms of Venus de Milo. ...

Peter Gabriel: Peter Gabriel

Review by Stephen Demorest, Rolling Stone, 5 May 1977

WHEN PETER GABRIEL resigned as frontman of Genesis two years ago, he said it was to search for the unexpected. On the evidence of his ...

Nick Drake: Bryter Later

Review by Stephen Demorest, Rolling Stone, 30 June 1977

NICK DRAKE may be the most ethereal recording artist I've ever heard. His fleeting career — the moody, mysterious music, the remote relationship with his ...

The Leaves, The Remains, The Seeds, The Shadows Of Knight, 13th Floor Elevators: Nuggets: Original Artyfacts from the First Psychedelic Era 1965-1968 (Sire)

Review by Stephen Demorest, Circus, 4 August 1977

THERE'S NO way you can take rock & roll too seriously after listening to this stuff. Compiled by Lenny Kaye (yes, he's also lead guitarist ...

The Sex Pistols: Punk Rock and the Sex Pistols

Overview by Stephen Demorest, Hit Parader, October 1977

Hey, said my name is called disturbance. I'll shout and scream, I'll kill the king,I'll rail at all his servants.–(Rolling Stones, 1968) ...

Thin Lizzy: Bad Reputation (Mercury SRM-1-1186)

Review by Stephen Demorest, Rolling Stone, 20 October 1977

LIKE THE good-bad characters in its songs, Thin Lizzy is no better than it should be. Catering to the moderate-hard-rock mainstream, the band's music has ...

Talking Heads: Talking Heads: 77

Review by Stephen Demorest, Rolling Stone, 3 November 1977

TALKING HEADS are the last of CBGB's original Big Four to record (following Patti Smith, the Ramones and Television), and their debut is an absolute ...

Patti Smith: A Portrait of the Young Woman as an Artist

Interview by Stephen Demorest, Sounds, 21 January 1978

  BACK IN THE '60s, when much of America was getting high on mind-altering drugs, Patti Smith never touched a pill, and never puffed a joint ...

Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers: Tom Petty: Animus Americus Unpoliticus

Interview by Stephen Demorest, Creem, August 1978

 [L — Fair-haired, guitar-playing carnivore indigenous to America; leaves characteristic trail of Coke bottles.] ...

Generation X: Generation X (Chrysalis)

Review by Stephen Demorest, Rock Scene, October 1978

ALL THE girls love blond Billy Idol (he pouts like Brando), and Generation X seem to have the right attitude. "No Session Musicians" it says ...

Kraftwerk: The Man Machine (Capitol)

Review by Stephen Demorest, Rock Scene, October 1978

MORE UNIVAC rock from the Berlin brainiacs. These geeks (you want a definition of 'geek', just look at this cover) nicknamed themselves "the man machine" ...

801, Phil Manzanera: Phil Manzanera/801: Listen Now (Polydor)

Review by Stephen Demorest, Rock Scene, October 1978

PHIL MANZANERA is one of those talented guitarists who speak much more eloquently with their hands than with their mouths. His "message" lyrics bemoaning the ...

The Cars That Ate Aerosmith

Report and Interview by Stephen Demorest, Creem, November 1978

THE SPRINGFIELD Civic Center is one of those snazzy glass-and-concrete exhibition complexes plunked down in the middle of decaying industrial towns to encourage the natives ...

Blondie: Parallel Lines (Chrysalis)

Review by Stephen Demorest, Rock Scene, February 1979

ABOUT HALFWAY through this fine album, I began to feel disappointed. Blondie is so widely recommended I'd hoped to at last muster some real enthusiasm ...

Lou Reed & the Secret Life of Plants: Cross-Pollination at the YMCA

Interview by Stephen Demorest, Creem, March 1979

"WHERE DOES this put me with the punk-rockers?" Lou Reed mutters, not caring much, as he helps himself to another blini. ...

The Clash On Tour

Report and Interview by Stephen Demorest, Creem, May 1979

DURING THE ten days between February 7 and 17, 1979, the people of Iran toppled the Shah; the American ambassador was assassinated in Afghanistan; President ...

Michael Jackson: Michael In Wonderland

Interview by Stephen Demorest, Melody Maker, 1 March 1980

Michael Jackson: "black Sinatra for the '90s" or just looking for an escape to heaven? STEVE DEMOREST gets to talk to him via Janett [sic] ...

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