Coffee and Conversation: Mark Kendall of GREAT WHITE
Great White at Hard Rock Live in Wheatland, CA
IIconic. Legendary. Groundbreaking. What can I say about the band GREAT WHITE that hasn’t already been said? Chances are, you know their work, even if you don’t know their name. Once Bitten, Twice Shy? Them. Rock Me? Them. House of Broken Love? Them. I could go on, but I digress.
Starting in the late 70’s as Dante Fox and playing their first gig in 1981 at The Troubadour in Hollywood, California, GREAT WHITE has been a mainstay for hard rock for over four decades. This Grammy-nominated band has sold over 10 million albums worldwide, has six Top 100 Billboard hits, nine Top 200 Billboard albums, 2 platinum albums, just to name a few accolades.
GREAT WHITE is coming to Hard Rock Live at the Hard Rock Casino in Wheatland, California on January 18th and I was lucky enough to chat with MARK KENDALL, lead guitarist, writer, and one of the founding members of GREAT WHITE and get the scoop on the upcoming tour, the new lead vocalist (well, sorta new), and what he does when he isn’t working. Enjoy and be sure to get your tickets now for GREAT WHITE with SLAUGHTER coming soon to a city near you!
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Chel: Well, I appreciate your time. I know you’re really busy gearing up for this tour that is coming to Hard Rock Live in Wheatland on January 18th. I will be there, front and center! I am a huge fan so what’s the scoop on what can fans expect from this tour?
KENDALL: I actually have some family there, and we have a lot of friends and fans so I am expecting a great night. I mean, as far as the show goes itself – just high energy. We try to bring the crowd right in right out of the gate and engage and save all of our energy for the stage because it takes a little bit out of you sometimes, you know, doing a lot of traveling. But we put that aside and all we care about is giving people their money’s worth. And, you know, as far as the song base goes, we try to play everything that you would expect and a few surprises as well.
Chel: Oh, so some new music coming our way?
KENDALL: Yeah. Actually we’ve been writing a lot. I’ve had the singer down from Alabama and we’ve been recording stuff here, but a friend of mine who used to be the guitar player in DIO has his studio a little bit more put together and adequate for laying down ideas. So I usually travel down there. It’s about a 45 minute drive, and we lay all this stuff down there. But yeah, we expect to have something out this year for sure. It’s exciting. Keeps us motivated to keep being creative.
Chel: You mentioned you brought your vocalist down from Alabama to practice, and he’s pretty new? Brett Carlisle. What did you see in him that you thought he would be a match for the future of GREAT WHITE?
KENDALL: Well, for one, he was filling in because our prior vocalist was committed to another band. So we had to get our shows around his schedule and sometimes he might even go out for 2 months. So we auditioned a few. Well, we sent tapes and stripped off the vocals on some of our biggest songs. They sent it back with vocals on it, and two of the guys weren’t even close. It was like they weren’t even trying. And one guy, this guy, Brett Carlisle, he sang the songs really well. I was still a little bit nervous about it, you know, just playing a show with no rehearsal. So we had him down. We rehearsed one day in Las Vegas. Then I started to feel a little more comfortable and then at the show, he just blew our minds and the minds of the people in the crowd. He sang our songs so good and, with so much power and everything. Not only did the people there that night, you know just lose it, but all around the world. I mean, there was press on him from Italy, Germany, the UK. All the magazine entities, internet-wise, you know, the ones that normally try to sneak dirt on you to make that headline? They were even raging over him. So, it’s very exciting. It just boosted our energy. You know, to have somebody because I think people want to hear the songs they grew up on and hear them done properly. And this guy can do it. And he has a really great stage presence. A total natural. He is just at ease talking to people from the stage and, you know, we’re just really enjoying him.
Chel: That’s great! And you’re right. I grew up on GREAT WHITE. I grew up on Tesla, Van Halen, KISS, Poison, Ratt. And the one thing that stood out to me with GREAT WHITE is the band was less about the flashiness and more about the lyrics and the music. My friends and I are Gen X’ers- we didn’t have Tik Tok or YouTube because we didn’t have computers! A lot of lyrics resonate with us and it’s set to iconic music. So it is great to hear that you found a lead vocalist that can help emulate that experience for people like me that want to hear those older songs because that is what we grew up on.
KENDALL: Sure. You know, when you have the records and you hear us on the radio, then you have to come see us live, and it sounds different. I don’t think people would appreciate that. So, he delivers the songs like, so good that it’s just amazing. It’s funny you mentioned Tesla because when we were on tour with Judas Priest, we played Cal Expo. It was a big outdoor venue. And, on the day off, we played a club, and there was a band called City Kid and I was kind of raging about the singer. How great he was. I go, ‘Man if these guys ever do originals they could be something.’ And, like four years later, we were doing a headlining tour with them, you know, for like 11 months. I mean, it was crazy how long we did that tour. But that was neat to watch that seed grow, so to speak.
Chel: I am bummed I missed that concert at Cal Expo!
KENDALL: Well Judas Priest was 1984 so that’s quite a while ago but we did play with Whitesnake there. I remember it was that famous promoter from the sixties? He did Grateful Dead and all? For some reason, his name is escaping me now (follow up: I believe Kendall was referring to Bill Graham).
Chel: You had mentioned that you have been doing a lot of writing. What are some of your influences? Have they changed over the years?
KENDALL: What resonated when I was a boy and I first started listening to music with my parents stuff. But I would sing along and I had a pretty good ear for music because my parents are musicians. And my grandpa was a musician, so there was music in the house all the time. But, my first records I ever got were the Doors, Cream, and Jimi Hendrix. I used to sit and just sing those songs over and over again. And then there was a band that played across the street, and I used to watch them through a window, and I saw this bass player playing with his teeth and I went and begged my dad for a guitar! And he got me a guitar. By the time I was 10, I was learning songs. But as far as influences, they kind of changed over the years. I would go to guys that played and really made me want to improve. They were the kind of people that played with a lot of feeling, you know, kind of had a lot of blues overtones. They squeeze notes a little differently than others. They relied on the moment as opposed to something that was maybe written on paper, you know? The first time I saw Carlos Santana play was on that Woodstock video and I saw him squeeze a note and hold it for about 20 seconds. And I go ‘man, how can anybody feel a note like that?’ It was like he was just pouring his life into it. And that made me really want to be like that and play like that.
Chel: I think you definitely accomplished that, for sure. I can see how important the music is to the band as well as the fans so it’s going to be a joy to watch on the 18th.
I have a 14 year old son who I am trying to get involved in music. He likes rock music but he is more into digital electronic music and I want him to learn an instrument. Any advice?
KENDALL: Well, shoot. I had a grandson, and I started trying to get him to play guitar but he didn’t have the patience. So, we got him a snare drum. And it was something about the immediate feedback he got from that. Like, when he hit the drum, it came right back at him. And now he’s a full-blown drummer. Playing the guitar takes patience and it’s kind of difficult, and if they’re impatient, it’s kind of tough. Electronic music. There’s nothing wrong with that either, I mean. Maybe he can get into the more technical end of it.
Chel: He has a slight interest in drums. But he saw a band I took photos of a week or so ago that had a banjo player. The band, The Native Howl is currently opening for Zakk Sabbath. They play what they call American Thrash Grass. It’s very bluesy and they are fantastic. My son has an interest in the banjo now.
KENDALL: Wow. You know, one time I was on an airplane and I saw this guy’s little case and I go, ‘What’s in there?’ and he said it was a banjo and I said, ‘I’m just curious. I’ve been playing guitar for a long, long time. How long would it take for me to get decent on the banjo?’ He told me I would be decent in a year if I practice a few hours a day. What takes the longest is the picking patterns. One of my favorite guitar players, Johnny Winter, played ukulele when he was a kid on tv, like when he was 9 years old. By the time he was 15, he changed to the guitar. He kept his finger picks and so when he plays solos and stuff, he’s hitting the strings in the same direction every time and it almost has this machine-like effect. It is very, very unique.
Chel: I learn something new every day. I am going to look Johnny Winter up!
GREAT WHITE, with over 10 million records sold worldwide, Grammy nominated, touring and creating music for more than 4 decades must get breaks: Do you get down time? And what do you like to do when you are not on the road or writing, or playing?
KENDALL: Well, me personally, I’m a sober advocate. So, I reach out, in case anybody’s out there, you know, struggling. What I have found is sometimes somebody you know, that they are kind of in trouble and maybe their alcohol or whatever the drug of choice is affecting them, the people around them, their responsibilities and whatnot. Sometimes all they need is maybe an encouraging word. I think there’s people out there that want sobriety, but they don’t know how to go about it so they don’t hassle it. I just offer up my sober friendship of encouragement and support. I’ve been working with people for about 12 years. I’ve got about 15 years of sobriety.
Chel: Congratulations on that.
KENDALL: Back when I had three years of sobriety and I thought ‘I wonder what would happen if I just reached out on Facebook and offered sober friendship and support and stuff.’ I could tell you what worked for me and stuff and maybe they could take a couple of things from that and perhaps it would help them as well.
Chel: Having that shoulder to lean on or a person to talk to, I am sure is much appreciated by those that you reach.
KENDALL: Yes. And as for just goofing around, I love playing pool. I played in the world championships. I’m pretty decent at it. That’s kind of an escape hobby of mine.
Chel: I have watched the world championships for pool but it has been years. I’ve always wanted to be good at it, but I never got there! It also sounds like you are doing really good things for those who may need help finding a sober path in life. That’s so awesome. I hope your support reaches all those who need it. Many don’t know where to turn so by you making it known you are there to support and maybe provide motivation to those in need is so commendable.
I just realized I have gone way over my time and I know you are busy preparing for your next show on the 18th at Hard Rock Live in Wheatland and I am really excited for it. Thank you for the conversation and for your time.
KENDALL: Thank you. Have a great day.
WHO: Great White w/Slaughter
WHEN: January 18, 2024
WHERE: Hard Rock Live, Wheatland
TICKETS and MERCH: Great White!
All photos courtesy of Chel Evah w/Art Paparazza
