Tesla - 2007

Tesla had a great run of hit albums in the late 80s and early 90s but unfairly was lumped into the category of 80s metal, whose popularity took a major hit from the Seattle grunge explosion of the early 90s. Although they toured with many 80s metal bands, Tesla didn't sport the look of the era and gained notoriety as a unique, classic rock sounding band driven by great guitars and thoughtful lyrics rather than big hair. Tesla's first three studio albums all went platinum as did their smash hit live album Five Man Acoustical Jam. The album Mechanical Resonance started things off in 1986 and produced the hits Little Suzi and Modern Day Cowboy. The Great Radio Controversy, their 2nd album, was their best selling album and went double platinum and spawned the hit singles Heaven's Trail (No Way Out), Love Song, and The Way It Is. In 1990, the band did an East Coast acoustical tour to prepare for a tour with Motley Crue. The show from Philadelphia on that tour was recorded and the band released it as Five Man Acoustical Jam. This album was a huge hit and was a big reason MTV started the Unplugged series. Their cover of The Five Man Electrical Jam's Signs from that album turned out to be their highest charting single. In 1992, the album Psychotic Supper also went platinum with the hits Stir It Up and What You Give. After the band released their 4th studio album, Bust a Nut, in 1994 to respectable sales, the band took a break until 2000. In 2001 the band released another live album titled RePlugged Live which contains many of their most popular songs as well as a couple of cover songs. The band would finally release another studio album in 2004 called Into the Now. All current members of Tesla are original except for longtime guitarist Tommy Skeoch, who was replaced in 2006 with Dave Rude. The band will release a cover album titled Real to Reel on June 5. The release will be split into 2 volumes called Reel One and Reel Two. Reel 1 will be available in stores while Reel 2 will be given away at their headlining concerts for free. Fans can hear four songs from the new album at teslarealtoreel.com. The band also recently announced plans for a box set are in the works.

Latest Release - Real to Reel - May 22

Bad Reputation - Thin Lizzy
Ball Of Confusion - Temptations
Beer Drinkers, Hell Raisers - ZZ Top
Bell Bottom Blues - Eric Clapton/Derek And The Dominoes
Day Of The Eagle - Robin Trower
Dear Mr. Fantasy - Traffic
Do You (Feel Like We Do) - Peter Frampton
Honky Tonk Woman - Rolling Stones
I Want To Take You Higher - Sly & The Family Stone
Is It My Body - Alice Cooper
I've Got A Feeling - Beatles
Make It Last - Montrose
Not Fragile - Bachmann Turner Overdrive
Rock Bottom - UFO
Saturday Night Special - Lynyrd Skynyrd
Seasons Of Wither - Aerosmith
Shooting Star - Bad Company
Stealin - Uriah Heep
Street Fighting Man - Rolling Stones
Thank You - Led Zeppelin
Walk Away - James Gang
War Pigs - Black Sabbath

by Chris Murphy

Did you Know?

• Tesla is named after Nikola Tesla, an inventor who helped pioneer the radio.
• Dave Rude replaced guitarist Tommy Skeoch in 2006.
• During their hiatus in the late 90 s, Skeoch and Keith formed the band Sofa King, which then became Bar7.
• One of the first big tours Tesla did was opening for Def Leppard in 1987.
• Tesla was originally called City Kidd.
• In the early days, Frank Hannon worked at a construction site and would hear their first song Modern Day Cowboy while working.
• The band has sold 14 million albums.
• Mechanical Resonance, their first album, was written while the band spent 3 months on Guam.
• In 1990, the band did an acoustic East coast tour to get ready for a tour with Motley Crue.
• The Philadelphia acoustic show was recorded and released as Five Man Acoustical Jam.
• Change in the Weather, the first song on Psychotic Supper was recorded in one take on the first day of recording the album.
• The band considers Psychotic Supper their favorite album.
• Bust a Nut sold over 800,000 copies in 1994.
• After taking a break, Tesla reunited for what was supposed to be a one-show only concert in Sacramento in 2001. This show helped to reunite the band for a full-fledged tour.
• In 2004, the album Into the Now, debuted at #30 on the Billboard album chart.