Join host Pete Pardo as he ranks the studio catalog of the great Canadian hard rock/prog/pop act Max Webster. #maxwebster #kimmitchell If you'd like to donate to the channel, we now have a ko-fi page at: ko-fi.com/pete...
Kim Mitchell is from my hometown of Sarnia, Ontario - Max Webster was a great and underrated band. You’re right Pete, Paradise Skies is played on the radio a lot here
A question for you: I'm a real stickler for well sequenced albums. A Million Vacations is so, all over the map, it must have been a nightmare for the producer to sequence. One thing I will say though The song Research At Beach Resorts is such a perfect album ender, it sounds almost designed to be a closing track. I'm just wondering if I'm the only one who perceives this. Thanks for the videos.
OMG. Kim Mitchell is from my home town of Sarnia, Ontario so I grew up listening to Max Webster. They are beloved here in Canada and are a staple of FM radio although arguably, Kim's solo work was actually more popular. We agree...can't understand why they were not big in the US. It's Managements fault ! Saw Kim a couple years ago. Sounded great as always. Thanks Pete for supporting this awesome band!
My favourite Canadian band for sure... they could do it all. Rock,progressive rock,ballads, even country tinged tunes.Only your nose knows,Blowin the blues away etc... shame they didn't get more exposure in the States.
How COOL,so glad to see and hear from a fellow max Webster fan🎶🎉! I live in western Kentucky & seen these guys open up for RUSH during the A Farewell To Kings TOUR!! They were AWESOME!! Blew me away,went out the next day and bought all the albums I could find of max Webster !! Glad you ranked their albums,I’m not sure I could have done so, I love them all !! Without even knowing what I was doing hear is a list of the bands albums I would buy,SEE IF YOU CAN SPOT MY TREND.. RUSH MAX WEBSTER. , FRANK MARINO&MAHOGANY RUSH, MOXY, TRIUMP, APRIL WINE, KICK AXE, HELIX, KIM MITCHELL See what I’m talking about,my musical taste gravitated torwed CANADIAN ROCK BANDS . They seemed to me ‘’ at least ‘’ to have a better true ROCK driving sound ,than a lot of the bands coming out of the U.S. I had enough KISS. & AEROSMITH Thanh you , and many new bands from the states never peaked my interest ! EXCEPT ALICE COOPER , DREAM THEATRE , EXTREME . Other bands from other countries were cool 😎 like PINK FLOYD ROGER WATERS, URIAH HEEP, U.F.O. from England , NAZARETH from Scotland 🏴 HEAVEN from Australia 🇦🇺 MICHEAL SCHENKER GROUP , SCORPIONS from Germany 🇩🇪. Also ALCATRAZZ but they were a mixed bag of artists from all over,YNGWIE MALMSTEEN,STEVE VIE,GRAHAM BONNET etc. So their is something in the WATER 💧 or SNOW or Ice in CANADA 🇨🇦 that produces the best ROCK N ROLL in the 🌎 WORLD . Just keep drinking that WATER.!!! Peace out ! B RAD. KUNDERT 🎶
Thanks for this. I agree as rock bands go. Maybe i'm biased, as i'm Canadian, but I really like your choices here. Not many have even heard of Moxy outside Canada. All great bands you listed. Nice to hear an American perspective on our Canuck boys.
I first saw Max Webster play my high school back in the late 70's. I had never heard of them before but was impressed. The day after that show, I bought Mutiny Up My Sleeve, loved it, then grabbed the rest of the albums, and followed the band's career right to the end. Then I saw Kim solo countless times in my hometown (in cottage country north of Toronto) and elsewhere, including a show supporting his first solo release, the EP. And I've seen a couple of the Max Webster reunions over the years. Always a party!
Pete, you really should check out the Canadian band (from Windsor, Ontario) called "The Tea Party". They released KILLER albums that were criminally underrated in the United States.
I saw them a few times supporting Rush, and then collected all their albums (and Kim's). I rank them 1. Mutiny Up My Sleeve 2. High Class In Borrowed Shoes. 3. Max Webster/Hangover 4. Universal Juveniles. 5. A Million Vacations.
My Favourite Max Webster Albums From Least To Best: # 5. MAX WEBSTER (1975) # 4. UNIVERSAL JUVENILES (1980) # 3. HIGH CLASS IN BORROWED SHOES (1977) # 2. A MILLION VACATIONS (1979) # 1. MUTINY UP MY SLEEVE (1978) 😎😁👍👌🤘✌
Check out the excellent Canadian band Coney Hatch if you haven't already Pete! Their first album was actually produced by Kim Mitchell and you can hear his influence in places.
This is awesome. You know your rock. Max is so underrated and the musicianship is off the charts. Kim who also has a very successful solo career after Max is like a jazz/rock/prog guru with unlimited chops. He still tours and just put out an album a month ago called "The Big Fantasize". A little mellower but still with great hooks. Also like your rankings but like you said it can change. Kim is a musicians musician but also a very humble man. I challenge guitar players out there to sit down and learn In the land of Giants from Universal Juveniles to truly apprecaite his playing or the chords in Paradise Skies. He was like my own private guitar teacher.
Paul Gilbert was a Max Webster fan and praised Kim Mitchell's playing. There is a video of Paul Gilbert on Kim Mitchell's radio show on RU-vid. Well worth watching.
seen Kim Mitchel with April wine last summer-outdoor show- fantastic show- Mitchel did a few Max Webster tunes-still got it- April also- damn still got it
Great show !! Was at a bar in London Ontario when they played on a Monday night ...only angles there and Kim came over between sets and sat with us to talk music
Here in Newmarket Ontario Canada we called the debut album “blockheads”. Love the vid. Canada thanks you for giving this ridiculously underrated band its due. Keep up the good work.
Man, I hope this lockdown never ends. I have been listening to your favourites year series and playing some tracks from the band you mention and now max Webster . Thanks for keeping me sane during this lockdown.
Well, I hope it does end soon. I have been listening to some great vacations and watching these videos do help make the time pass more quickly. But I miss my friends.
Well, I hope they develop a coronavirus vaccine before the world totally collapses, but I can say that I have no problem whatsoever staying inside and revisiting my old albums, guided by the very excellent Pete Pardo!
Another excellent show, Mr. Pardo! I’m happy to say I have all of Max Webster’s studio albums, plus the live release and compilation. “A Million Vacations” rises to the top with me, though they are all excellent. Please do a Trooper show! That’s a Canadian band very much of that ilk.
Wow that's awesome...at one point they were actually bigger than Rush especially here among the "Toronto Tontos"! Amazing band that didn't get the recognition or respect they so deserved...Ecstaticlly happy that you're rating them as they were definitely one of my favourite Rock bands of all time..big shout out to you for doing this!!!
High Class In Borrowed Shoes is among the most original, and best albums ever recorded. Brilliant, from the first note to the last. Kim Mitchell is the most underrated lead guitarist ever.
You've inspired me to re-visit Max Webster. Never got into them back in the day. Thought they had a few good songs, but never gave the catalog much attention...until now.
Cheers. Anthem/ole released a box set on both CD and vinyl in Canada in 2017 called The Party. It includes the five studio albums, Live Magnetic Air, a collection of live and studio outtakes called The Bootleg and Kim Mitchell's debut solo EP. However, it doesn't include "Hot Spots" or "Overnight Sensation," so keep an eye out for the Diamonds Diamonds compilation if you want to complete it.
Hi Pete, thank you for doing this video, i really love Max Webster, they're one of the unsung bands to come out of Canada, and a pretty unique one tho. My favorite album from them is Mutiny Up My Sleeve, followed up by High Class in Borrowed Shoes, A Million Vacations, Universal Juveniles and the debut. I also think Kim Mitchell was a criminally underrated guitar player, as most of the ones to come out of Canada like Alex Lifeson, Frank Marino or Pat Travers( By the way, any chance of doing a Pat Travers rankingg the albums in a future? )
Hey Pete. Another similar band from Toronto who were rockin' the same time as Max is Frank Soda and The Imps. Same quirky unique sounding band that was a local rival with Max. Highly recommend checking them out. Side note, prior to them being their own band they were Thor's backing band in the early 70's. That alone should be enough to check them out to see what they became. Love your channel and all your content. Keep on rockin'.
Yeah Frank is an amazing guitar player and a wild showman. I saw him at a bar back in the late 80s. He jumped up on my table and started playing his guitar with one of my winter gloves! 😎🤘🤘
Thanks so much for this, Pete! Growing up in Canada in the pre-internet 70s and 80s, we just assumed they were big everywhere because everyone listened to Max Webster here. So many great tunes with such a unique sound that I liken to Rush playing songs written by Frank Zappa, thanks in part to the often bizarre lyrics of Pye Dubois. They're a little bonkers, so much fun, with great musicianship. I love 'em.
Thanks for posting - Max Webster is one of the most underrated bands in history. It's good - and unusual - to hear from an American fan: I didn't think there were any. All the members contributed, including Pye Dubois, the lyricist who toured with the band.
I used to see Max Webster in the local clubs around Toronto in the seventies . They never put on a bad performance. They used to mix in covers of Jethro Tull and Deep Purple songs , and did both bands proud. Great covers. Especially of Strange Kind of Woman. I saw them open for the Strawbs at Maple Leaf Gardens in the mid seventies and they were fantastic. As were the Strawbs that night. David Cousins of the Strawbs spent a few minutes during their show to heap praise on them. He was really impressed with them. They should have been much bigger.
Glad you love some of the Canadian bands we grew up with here in Canada. Others that were big in Canada 🇨🇦 but not in the states worth checking out are: Prism, Goddo, FM, Streetheart , chilliwack
Love Max Webster. Grew up listening to them on the radio here in Halifax, Nova Scotia. April Wine (hometown band) is my favourite band. Take a listen to Attitude from 1993. Very much a return to form. I get what you say about their albums, but this one is in my top 5 studio albums. So maybe end at 1993! Love the channel, Pete!
Hi Pete. Forgive the pun, but I’m late to The Party for this ranking! Thanks very much for highlighting one of the favourite bands from my youth. Growing up in Toronto, I was a huge fan of Max and Rush. These days, I find that Max has aged better with me, more so than their famous counterparts. I had always admired Kim Mitchell’s unique approach to the guitar and writing. Although he went on to achieve much acclaim as a solo artist, the work with MW (and Pye Dubois) remains my favourite. Somebody else here described them as a cross between Zappa and Boston and they certainly had elements of each. I saw them about 5 times in the 70s, including for New Year’s Eve in ’79. During the show, Geddy Lee surprised everyone with a special appearance for Battlescar. As a composer, the music I write these days has very little in common with what I grew up with, including MW, but that’s the way things work out sometimes. Regardless, I will always have a special place in my heart for this band and Kim Mitchell. Lastly, I would have a hard time ranking their albums but for me, Universal Juveniles would be farther down the list. To close, thank you for highlighting them. They deserve worldwide acclaim they were never lucky enough to receive back when they were active. Best, Terry
Thanks for this episode Pete! Max was always a favourite band of mine... If there was ever a single guitarist who could be considered the most under-rated, it would have to be Kim Mitchell. Brilliant player. Not sure how familiar you are with his solo career, but his first self-titled EP (only 5 tracks on it) is absolutely stellar! His solo stuff definitely went a bit more poppy as it went along, but that first EP still has a lot of the Max spirit in it to my ears!
I saw them open for Rush. I wish I had known them better when I saw them. Rory Gallagher also opened for Rush and he was someone I sort of blew off at the time but became a true fan after he passed away. Rory would make a great video.
All of these are dang good albums! I figured I'd show where the live album would fit for me, since it's such a small discography. 6) Universal Juveniles 5) Max Webster 4) Mutiny Up My Sleeve 3) Live Magnetic Air 2) A Million Vacations 1) High Class in Borrowed Shoes I really like Kim's solo albums, too! I was actually into those before the Max stuff. Thanks, Pete! Edit after watching: The Tubes are a great comparison! Also, there's a box set called The Party that has all of the Max stuff with a bonus disc of rarities and another of Kim's hard-to-find solo EP.
"Can't get any soap stone Carve away the war Won't join the army band Sell in a general store" "Now ain't there any systems to curb the hiccups and the scratch? " Max Webster rules ... I agree with Pete.. "High Class In Borrowed Shoes' #1,
Hi Peter! Thanks for the videos on the ranking of Rory Gallagher and Gov't Mule, great videos. I hope to see the ranking of Eric Clapton (solo) and Joe Bonamassa (solo) albums. Congratulations on the channel.
Thanks for doing this show Pete. I've heard of Max Webster, especially in line with Rush but they have always been forgotten before giving them a spin.
I will add Americans might know Kim Mitchell from his 1983 hit Go For Soda.His biggest hit over all is the song Patio Lanterns from 85 which is ( for better or worse ) played on every Canadian oldies station at least once a day; and also , if you do a best of April Wine til 85 or so i promise to stop commenting 'Do April Wine!....i will instead start commenting 'Do Anvil!' Thanx and rock on ! 🇨🇦🇨🇦🇨🇦🇨🇦
Still have my original vinyl I bought as a kid, Million Vacations, High Class in Borrowed Shoes (My fav too...), Universal,Juveniles and Live Magnetic Air. They played in a local High School gym when I was in Elementary School.
The song "Battle Scar" was played on "The Big 6" 600 AM WTAC in Flint, Michigan (when it was a hard rock station from the middle of May 1980 till July 12, 1981) when it became a country station.
Kim Mitchell was my first concert when I was 13. I got into April Wine when I got a bit older. I am from Ontario but not Sarnia like the rest of the comments! (lol)
At Christmas of 1981, I received a number of albums from my Dad (My parents owned a “Sam The Record Man” store) as a Christmas prezzie, amongst them was a copy of Universal Juveniles in it’s full blown original glory, it took over an hour to read all the liner notes. I almost wore that album right out, literally. Fun fact, Kim co-wrote with Pye Dubois, probably one the best lyricists of the age who also co-wrote with Neil Peart as well. Thanks for your great review and attention to a criminally underrated band.
Saw these cats play at my High School (Sir Oliver Mowat) here in Scarborough-Ontario, Canada way, way back in the day. And have been a fan ever since. Absolutely agree with your #1 album pick, as well.
Growing up in Niagara Falls, I heard these guys on Toronto and Buffalo radio. Got all 5 studio CDs and the live one. GREAT stuff! Never saw them live, but I saw Kim solo 5 times.
Took me a number of years to find the Original vinyl albums here in America, Along with a 12 inch vinyl of Battlescar / Blue River Liquor Shine, and an Anthem vinyl copy of Kim’s First solo album Akimbo Alogo… Mutiny Up My Sleeve and Universal Juveniles fight for the #1 spot regularly 🤓
Thanks Pete...Love The Max Machine!! From worst to best for me... 5. Max Webster 4. Universal Juveniles 3. Mutiny Up My Sleeve 2. A Million Vacations 1. High Class In Borrowed Shoes.
The Max Machine was a huge part of my teenage years in the late 70's. Saw them live several times. When I was going to college in the early 80's in Calgary, I had a couple Max Webster tshirts. Many did not know the band and I was known as "Max" to quite a few. Haha. Also saw Saga live during those college years on the World's Apart Tour. Good times!
Hey man, thanks for your videos. Other than Led Zeppelin, Jimi Hendrix, a few albums from Deep Purple and Pink Floyd I've never been a huge heavy metal or prog-rock fan, despite the fact that I've been a music addict for my entire life. It's not that I disliked it, but I never felt motivated to seek it out either. But your obvious love for these genres are contageous and so I've started to check some of this stuff out. I now have all the Pink Floyd albums and nearly everything from UFO and Yes, and I'm just getting started. Keep up the good work buddy.
I have most of those albums on 8 Track (except Universal Juveniles as 8 Tracks were obsolete here then or a handful sold. Ever listened to Trooper? "Jeanine"is my favorite They had a few good ones. Doug & The Slugs are even better! The members could all play each other's instruments flawlessly in concert. Theyd switch position during live performance and you couldn't tell (that much practice not lip syncing). Max Webster albums sold well in Ontario and are available not impossible to find. Kim did 5/6 GREAT Solo albums. I have 5 of them. He charted with (and still get airplay) "Alana Loves Me" "All We Are" "Rockland Wonderland" and others that slip my mind right now. All sold well.
FUCK YEAH DUDE! Max Webster is the shit- I can't recommend them highly enough. I've be a huge fan for ages- was lucky to see them open for Rush back in the day. Maybe the most underrated band ever. I'm a huge Phish fan and there are some interesting similarities- I keep getting Phish fans into Max on Phish fan forum. Kim Mitchell is such a smoking guitar player- Paul Gilbert said that Kim was a huge influence on him and his friends when they were learning to shred. Should mention that there is an 8-CD or vinyl box set available now called The Party which includes Live Magnetic Air, 'The Bootleg' CD with unreleased tracks, as well as Kim Mitchell's first solo album. Completely worth owning. Awesome shirt BTW. Hey, ever get into I Mother Earth? If not... holy crap. Amazing and totally unique. Like a heavier, more psychedelic RHCP with shades of Santana.
High Class In Borrowed Shoes is their best album. A Million Vacations. Mutiny Up My Sleave, Max Webster and than Universal Juveniles. Live Magnetic Air is a great live album. His first solo Akimbo Sligo is a great album as well. Go for soda and Patio lanterns, and All we are are played to death on the radio though. I met him in Peterborough one day and told him my favourite album was mutiny. He's a really down to earth cool guy.
The Stampeders, my favorite Canadian trio!! Saw then at Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario Canada in October of 2017. Met then afterwards & the drummer Kim Berly shooked my hand really hard!! Only 3 CD's I do NOT have including "Backstage Pass" (LIVE) (1974), "Platinum" (1978) & "Ballsy" (their final album from 1979).
One of my first vinyl purchases as a teenager, and still have it, was Live Magnetic Air. Soon after purchased Mutiny Up my Sleeve, Universal Juveniles, and Diamond Diamond Album.
"Live Magnetic Air" I think is on iTunes. The song "Let Go The Line" (from 1979 "A Million Vacations" which I have on album on Capitol Records purple label) was played a lot on AM 630 CFCO in Chatham, Ontario (known as "Classic Gold" hit station, sadly since 2009, it is a country station)!! I also have "20th Century Masters: The Millennium Collection"!! That is all i got. By the way, RUSH (with Max Webster) opened up Joe Louis Arena in Detroit, MI which debuted back in March of 1980!!
up in cottage country in ont we would tell our American friends that max is the canadian version of zappa and here among the cat's would be a perfect example
Bryan Adams, Rush, BTO, The Guess Who, Loverboy, Triumph, Honeymoon Suite, Glass Tiger, Nickelback, Saga, Triumph, Tom Cochrane, The Band, April Wine, Stampeders....' pretty sure all these acts had success in the United States. Not getting airplay can be a result of lousy promotion, bad timing and sometimes just plain old bad luck.
Texas loved MOXY too.. Another hard rock outfit from Ontario.. 3 great albums and then one with vocalist Mike Rynoski who went on to some success with other notable band. Can anyone guess what band he joined/formed ?
What a great band! I only saw them play live once, and Buzz's later band Buzzsaw once later. That guy could blow a mean harp! I think, with a slight name change, Mike went on to form Loverboy as Mike Reno?
I always thought it was weird that Crash Test Dummies did so well in the States. Not a band you would expect at all. Another odd one that did very well in Texas was Garfield. They were a great band, sort of folky proggy rock, and they had a flute player!
I saw Max Webster opening for Rush on the Moving Pictures tour, in Montréal....was a great show and remembered Kim at the end of the show throwing his fender offstage cause he was pissed off at something....I wish I knew what happened, maybe the sound? they were supposed to do battlescar ...Kim has his own style on the guitar, very underrated....
