THE THORNS 04 - Rolling Stones

The Thorns, part four. Hanging out with The Stones!

The Thorns released our debut album on Aware/Columbia Records twenty years ago. As I continue to the story of the band, here’s part four where we hang out with some of our heroes and they help us secure our band name.

The Thorns with Jim Keltner at Southern Tracks Recording. 2002.

As I mentioned in my last Thorns post, we concluded early on our last day of basic tracking, and Brendan told drummer Jim Keltner he was all done. Jim was happy to hear that. He had some friends in town he was hoping to see that night. I asked who his friends were. His friends were a little band called The Rolling Stones. He asked if I’d be interested in hanging out, and in a nanosecond, I replied, “Absolutely!” I gave him my number, and he said he’d call if anything was happening.

I spent the evening huddled over my phone. At 11 pm, it rang. It was Jim, “I’m here with Ronny in his room. He’d love to meet you guys if you want to come by.” Jim gave me Ronny’s hotel alias. I don’t recall what it was. Let’s just say it was Reg Goldman. Jim instructed me to report to the concierge desk at the Ritz Carlton Hotel and tell them I was there to see Reg Goldman.

I called Matthew Sweet and we made our way over to the hotel.

I did as I was told and reported to the concierge desk. Once I mentioned the magic words “Reg Goldman,” we were introduced to a large security guard who escorted us to the elevators. Exiting the elevator on Ronny’s floor, we spotted two more security guards at each end of a long hallway. We knocked on the door.

At this point, let me put this into perspective. Since I was a kid, I’ve been a huge Rolling Stones fan. I mean, HUGE fan. The fact that I was standing outside Ronny’s hotel room about to meet one of my heroes was a big deal for me. By this point in my career, I had met many famous musicians, but this was on another level. I was about to be welcomed into the inner sanctum of The Stones!

Just as this was all sinking in, the door swung open to reveal Ronny with a big smile on his face. He opened his arms wide and came in for a big hug. It was as if we’d known each other all our lives. Once Matthew got the hug treatment, Ronny welcomed us into his suite.

We greeted Jim and were introduced to Ronny’s wife, Josephine, and a pair of friends from Ronny’s recent trip to rehab. Apparently, Mick insisted Ronny stay clean for the tour.

We visited for a while, and at one point, I commented on the song that was playing. It was Marvin Gaye’s “Got to Give It Up-Part II.” I told Ronny how much I loved the track, and he cranked it up. Then he got excited and told us he had a copy of a yet-to-be-released film about The Funk Brothers. Charlie Watts had lent him a promotional advance. “You’ve got to see it! It’s great.” The film was the now-classic Standing in the Shadows of Motown.

He popped the movie in, hit play, and turned the volume up loud. By this time it was getting late, but here we were about to begin watching a feature-length film. I guess it should have come as no surprise to learn that Ronny was a night owl.

It was incredibly cool watching the movie with Jim and Ronny. It was as if we had a real-life commentary track. They knew the musicians featured in the film. Jim talked about how James Jamerson, the legendary bassist, had contacted him seeking session work when he first landed in Los Angeles.

Another memorable moment came when Joan Osbourne took the stage to perform. Ronny was sitting just to my right on a couch, and he slapped my leg and said, “I don’t know who she is, but she’s GREAT!” I also recall him snapping along with some of the tunes. I was impressed with how in the pocket his snaps were. Again, I guess I should not have been surprised to learn that Ronny Wood has great feel.

At one point during the screening, I placed my hand on my jaw and winced a bit. Ronny noticed and asked if I was okay. I told him I had a toothache, and he asked if I wanted him to call Keith to see about getting “a little something for the pain.” I was several years into my sobriety at the time, so I declined the offer. This little episode found its way into my yet-to-be-recorded song “Frank Advice from Robert Frank.” Here are some of the lyrics:

I hung around with Ronny Wood and Keith Richards once
I had an all-access pass
Shot pool ate a bacon sandwich
Drank vodka from a pint glass
It was a blast
Dare I say it was a gas gas gas
Speaking of which what the hell is a crossfire hurricane anyway?
And why wasn’t I born in one?

Then later in the song, I sing:

I did hang out with The Rolling Stones
That much is true
However I did not eat a bacon sandwich
Been vegan since 2002
And I most certainly did not drink vodka from a pint class
Seeing as I was sober at the time
So sober in fact that when Ronny noticed I had a toothache
And asked if I wanted to talk to Keith about getting a little something for the pain
I said, “No thanks.”
Sometimes I wonder what would have happened if I’d said, “Yes.”

The bit about shooting pool and eating bacon sandwiches did not come from when I hung out with The Stones. This was reported to me by another Stone—Stone Gossard of Pearl Jam fame. When PJ opened for The Stones in the early 90s, Stone reported to me that Keith and Ronny were drinking vodka from pint glasses, eating bacon sandwiches, and shooting pool in the middle of the afternoon. That image always stuck with me, so I used it in my song.

Anyway… I did not take Ronny up on his offer to call Keith. And indeed, as the lyric says, I do wonder what would have happened if I’d said yes.

By the time the film ended, it was officially the wee hours, and we did not want to wear out our welcome, so we said our goodbyes. Before we left, they asked if we wanted tickets and passes for the show the next night. That was a no-brainer.

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Shawn Mullins could not join us for some reason, so we brought our assistant engineer, Karl, along for the ride. The gig was at a little joint called Turner Field, an intimate little venue. Holds about 50,000. We picked up our tickets and sticky passes at will call and made the long trek to the backstage area on the opposite end of the stadium.

Once we finally made it backstage, we saw Josephine. “There you are! Ronny’s been wondering when you’d show up!” Again, a big hug from Ronny. We milled around the hallway for a bit, and then Charlie showed up looking dapper as hell.

As Ronny introduced us, Charlie seemed a bit standoffish until he heard the magic words, “These are the guys Jimmy’s been recording with.” Apparently, Jim, or Jimmy as The Stones call him, had spoken highly of us. The Jim Keltner seal of approval goes a long way. Charlie turned towards us and suddenly, his aloofness melted away.

After enjoying a friendly chat with Charlie, Ronny asked if we wanted to meet Keith. Another no-brainer. We headed down the corridor and just passed a snooker table was Keith’s dressing room.

We followed Ronny into Keith’s lair. The lighting was dim, and it was completely vibed out with scarves draped over lamps. Ronny threw his arm around Keith’s shoulder and introduced us, “This is Pete Thorn and Matt Thorn. They’re The Thorns, the group Jimmy’s been working with.” Then in a hushed tone, he said something really positive. I wish I could remember exactly what he said. I do remember that it was a glowing review.

At one point during our hang with Keith, he poked fun at Ronny’s sobriety with the memorable line, “Rehab is for quitters.” Our time with Keith was brief. Showtime was approaching, so Matt Thorn, Karl, and I headed to the front of house. They set us up with great seats on the floor in a special area in front of the lighting board. The show was great.

It was funny to us that Ronny thought our names were Pete Thorn and Matt Thorn. We did not dare correct him. A while later, the fact that The Rolling Stones knew us as The Thorns helped us win our battle with the label over our band name.

At least some of the powers that be in New York thought we should capitalize on our names. Matthew, Shawn, and I were a united front. We hated the idea. There was no way to put our names together that sounded right. Nothing had the ring of Crosby, Stills and Nash. The best option was Sweet, Mullins and Droge and that sounded like a southern food dish.

When our producer, Brendan O’Brien, shared the Rolling Stones story with Columbia Records president Donny Ienner, Ienner said, “That’s it! If The Stones know them as The Thorns, they’re The Thorns!”

It turned out there was already a Scandinavian black metal band called The Thorns. So we had to pay them off to use the name.

After securing our name, it was time to put the record out. Stay tuned for part five, where I’ll finish the saga.

Peace & Love Songs,

Pete

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