Here’s a good trivia question: What do Whitesnake, Night Ranger, and Cher have in common? If your answer is “They all had Top 10 hits in the 1980s.”, you’d be half right. Another correct answer is that all of these acts have featured the talent of Joel Hoekstra at one point in time or another. We had the chance to sit down with Joel to discuss all of these musical ventures, as well as his solo project, Joel Hoekstra’s 13.
Greetings Joel! Welcome to Defenders of the Faith! How are you doing today?
Joel Hoekstra: I’m doing great. Thanks so much for having me on.
Thanks for taking the time to do this. I’d like to start by congratulating you on the excellent new album, Running Games. I’ve been playing it all week and love it.
JH: Thank you so much. I really appreciate that.
It’s been 6 years since the last 13 album. When did the ideas for this one first come about?
JH: It’s hard. I really don’t have a moment where it all began. Some of the riffs were around longer than others. But in terms of definitely moving forward with it, it was a couple years ago. It was about halfway recorded by the time COVID hit, so it was nice to have COVID kind of free up everybody’s schedules and be able to expedite it and get it done. There was a silver lining for sure.
Running Games really combines the best elements of 80s heavy metal, hard rock, and AOR. Growing up in the 80s, who were your favorite bands and biggest influences?
JH: It’s a long answer. I started out very much into hard rock and heavy metal: AC/DC, Black Sabbath, Iron Maiden, Scorpions, Ozzy, Dio. All that stuff was really big when I was a kid. I’d also say more melodic bands like Journey, Foreigner, Boston. Classic rock bands like Zeppelin and Pink Floyd and Hendrix. Progressive bands like Rush and Yes. And then all the guitar albums: Yngwie, Satriani, Vai, Steve Morse. That’s the kind of stuff I grew up on. You mix all of that together and those are my rock influences.
I hear a little bit of all of that on this album. I love the old school, melodic 80s approach. We hear it a lot today, but I don’t think to the extent and quality that we hear it on this album.
JH: Thanks. I’m trying to come from the standpoint of writing these songs with the listener in mind. What would you want to hear? I’m trying to avoid the whole “guitar album” thing, like “Here’s a three minute guitar solo for you now.” This is very much about me having the opportunity to write all the songs. Not just the guitar riffs, but the vocal melodies and the lyrics, and be the person who gets to call the shots on the mix and the final sound of it all. That’s what it’s all about. It’s about the songs, and obviously my guitar playing. That’s enough for me. I have instrumental albums out from years ago and feel like I’ve done enough of that. I also feel there’s enough of that out there these days. People are a little tired of hearing the shred albums and stuff like that. Anyway, I’m just trying to come from the standpoint of the listener and make a good rock album.
A lot of people associate the number 13 with bad luck. Why did you choose it as the name of this project?
JH: Well for me its been good luck. Also, I needed something short because I didn’t want to call it “Joel Hoekstra”. I thought, well that leaves people to believe it’s an instrumental album or it’s something I’m singing on. And I didn’t just want to call it “13” because that would sound like a band and that’s not really fair to all the guys involved, especially seeing as I’m doing all the writing and it’s really my thing. So I figured let’s go with my name and something else, like it’s a project. I needed something short and 13 is my lucky number, so I thought that that made good sense. If it was Joel Hoekstra’s Defenders of the Faith *laughs*, I mean, how many characters are allowed in a band name these days?
You’ve got some real heavy hitters on this album. There’s Russell Allen, Tony Franklin, Vinny Appice, and Derek Sherenian. Could you give some background about your history with each of these guys?
JH: The project came together first with Tony Franklin because we had just finished doing a project together called VHF. That was on NEP who put out psychedelic instrumental rock. I think about 3 or 4 people bought it *laughs*. I told him I wanted to do this and make it sound like a band. He recommended Vinny Appice on drums. I thought, “Great! Perfect! Now we got that Dio thing; that back to the early 80s vibe.” Right at that time, Russell Allen was joining Trans-Siberian Orchestra. The more I listened to him, I thought, “This is great. He can sing Dio like nobody’s business, but he can also sing some of that blues based lighter rock that I like.” Stuff like Foreigner. He can sing like Lou Gramm and Paul Rodgers. What’s not to like? Derek Sherenian and I have known each other a long time. He’s the perfect guy for getting great sounds and perfect parts and great solos. He’s really the go to guy for rock keyboard players.
Then my friend Jeff Scott Soto. We go way back too. We know each other from Trans-Siberian Orchestra. He helped me out with the background vocals. I like to say he’s the most overqualified background vocalist in the world. He needs another project he’s singing lead on like he needs a hole in the head. He was fine with singing backgrounds and all kidding aside, he really did take this thing to a whole new level. If I had done the backgrounds, it wouldn’t be nearly as cool. Having him on there is a very valuable part of this album.
Anyways, I go way back with some of them. When Tony recommended him, Vinny and I didn’t know each other at that point at all. Amazingly enough, he recorded that whole first album and he and I had never met. We’ve worked together a little bit since then, so we’ve gotten to know each other a little which is great.
From growing up knowing Vinny from Sabbath and Dio in the 80s to having him on your record, was that a surreal experience?
JH: It’s the story of the last 15 years of my life really. I grew up listening to all these people I’ve been working with. It’s not that they’re that much older than me. They were all kids when they were putting out these albums in their 20s and I just happened to be 14 or 15. But that’s really the story of my career, playing with a lot of my heroes from when I was younger.
A handful of these songs have a real Whitesnake vibe to them, particularly “Heart Attack”, “I’m Gonna Lose It”, and “Fantasy”. Were these songs written with the band in mind?
JH: Not really. There was a couple of riffs that were…”Heart Attack” I actually wrote out in Hook City where we record with Whitesnake. I did write that song when we were out there, but I don’t know necessarily in my mind if it was for Whitesnake. I just remember writing it and hanging out there. “I’m Gonna Lose It” I feel like I wrote at home. “Fantasy” actually is the oldest riff on the album. I wrote that back, at least the guitar riffs for it, for Nathan James as possibly for the first Inglorious album. I think we had two that we collaborated on and he picked the other one. I think the song is called “You’re Mine” on the first album. So that was something for Nathan that just never happened. I always liked it. I thought, “That’s a tune man!” I liked the space in the verse, that “duh duh, duh duh”. That’s great for Vinny to play over. He likes those riffs with space where he can get all the nuance of his drumming in.
Speaking of Whitesnake, are there any plans on that front?
JH: David (Coverdale)’s just wrapping up putting out that compilation trilogy: The Rock Album, Love Songs, and now The Blues Album. We’ll see what he’s got in mind next and I’ll just be there to support him with whatever that is.
Do you foresee 13 doing any live shows in the future?
JH: Well, its happened. We did one show in support of Dying to Live on the Monsters of Rock Cruise. It has happened in the past and I would love to make that happen. I think at this stage we just need to get the world open and I’ll take it from there.
I know you were born and raised here in the Chicago area. Correct me if I’m wrong, but was Jim Peterik the first major artist you worked with?
JH: Yeah, Jim gave me my start in a lot of ways. I was playing with Cathy Richardson locally there and I ended up doing some sessions for Jim. Then he put me in his World Stage band on guitar, so I got to meet a lot of people coming through. He would have guests come in and have these events once a year. So I got to play with Don Barnes from 38 Special, Kip Winger, Alan Parsons, Rik Emmett from Triumph. One of those people that would come in and do it was Kelly Keagy from Night Ranger. I got to see Kelly once a year for about 7 years and that really led to my opportunity to play with Night Ranger.
In Night Ranger and Whitesnake, you shared guitar duties with Brad Gillis and Reb Beach respectively. What are the pros and cons of playing in a guitar duo as opposed to playing on your own?
JH: I don’t know man. I like working in a guitar duo. I think it’s fun. The more, the merrier. Working with Brad was great. I had a lot of fun with him. and we had a great big brother, little brother relationship. We definitely made the 1980s happen again in 2008 when I joined that band. We rocked out pretty hard. I love Brad. He has a very identifiable style and a very lyrical style. Reb Beach is a great guy and great bandmate. Everybody knows he’s a great lead guitar player, but he’s a great rhythm guitar player and great background vocalist. He’s just a great musician overall. I’m definitely honored to work with both of those guys.
Speaking of making the 80s happen again, weren’t you involved with Rock of Ages?
JH: I was part of the Broadway show which ran over 6 years here in New York. That gave me the opportunity to play a gig basically everyday that I wasn’t on tour with Night Ranger or Trans-Siberian Orchestra during that 6 year period. That ended up being a really great thing. I was friends with the producers and they got me a cameo in the movie. That was Sebastian Bach, Nuno Bettencourt, Kevin Cronin, Debbie Gibson, and myself tucked into this protest scene. I was only singing. There was no guitar in my hands or anything. The movie kind of lost the fun of what the Broadway show was, but I had a great time doing it and hanging out with all those guys for a few days. We did a concert and catering for all the actors. I got to know Russell Brand and Tom Cruise a little bit during that time, so that was fun. It was a great life experience. I didn’t really like the movie all that much, but I had a lot of fun.
Yeah I remember seeing it when it came out back in junior high. It was like, “Well, the movie’s meh, but there’s some great music.”
JH: I think they were gunning for what Glee was doing where they were hoping to turn those songs on to a whole new generation, but making it PG took a lot of the raunch out of it. At the Broadway show, there was a band onstage the whole time. So if you were a fan of the music, while the show would kind of poke fun at some of the stereotypes of the 80s and that scene, at least you had a band to watch the whole time. You’re like, “I don’t care whatever they’re doing. There’s a band!” So you got to watch the band and all the scantily clad dancers and drink in your seat at the show. I think the show was a really fun time. It was a great show in a lot of ways in that it didn’t take itself seriously, but the movie turned it into something that was a little too squeaky clean. They changed the plot and everything. It was pretty different than the live show.
How did you get the Cher gig?
JH: David Coverdale was getting knee surgery during 2017, so he gave us the heads up that we weren’t gonna be touring that year. I just reached out to all my friends and asked to keep an eye out if anybody needed anyone to fill in. My friend Justin D’Errico recommended me to Dave Berry, Cher’s guitar player, as a sub, because both of them play guitar on The Voice. They were getting really busy doing that, so I got to go in kind of as a one time deal and it turned into a long term thing. I guess 2 or 3 years. I’ve had a pretty good run doing that. That was something out of leftfield for sure *laughs*. It’s not something you see coming when you’re 11 years old practicing Black Sabbath. Not that I was planning on that one. It’s just an example of hard work taking you to places you’d never really imagine. It’s nice to keep all of your avenues open in life. Sometimes you get these fun experiences that you never would’ve thought.
The one thing I’ve noticed about you, whether it’s performing with Cher or Whitesnake, is the energy you exude while performing. You do that half guitarist, half frontman thing that Angus Young does. How important is it for you to have that stage presence with the playing?
JH: I think in its moment when it’s part of the gig it’s very important. I think with Night Ranger I learned my lesson. We had the drums on the side of the stage obviously, so the stage was open for Brad, Jack (Blades), and myself. It was my job to hold down this area of the stage. With TSO, you’ve got this big, wide deck the width of the arena and all of us are going to spots. It’s your job to hold everybody’s attention when you’re in that spot. You don’t want to just park yourself there and stare at your fingerboard for that time. Everybody starts looking elsewhere. I’ve done enough shows to see the way that works. If you’re staring down at your guitar neck, you look up and everybody is looking at somebody else who’s more engaged and looking out. I just kind of learned my lessons as I went. Now that’s different with every gig. There’s certain times where with Cher we were in the background on a bandstand, basically in the dark for most of the gig, while she was downstage with the dancers. I would step out there for my couple moments with her and for those moments it’s time to flip the switch and be visually entertaining. But yeah, I think it’s definitely part of the job to entertain people up there too.
If you were on a desert island and could only have one guitar with you, which guitar would it be?
JH: Well on a desert island I’d probably take an acoustic because I’d probably just mellow out, possibly turn myself into the poor man’s Tommy Emmanuel. That’d be fun. But my main guitar is definitely my gold top Les Paul. That’s my number one. It kind of instantly became my main guitar. It took me a long time to buy a Les Paul for whatever reason in my life. I was one of these kids growing up in the 80s playing a Kramer and a Jackson. Then I got into playing Teles and Strats and SGs, even a Howard Roberts for a while. All of those became my main guitar before I finally got a Les Paul. I went, “What the hell took me so long?” *laughs*. Ever since then, I’ve gotten addicted to being a Les Paul guy at this stage in the game. I prefer it to any of my other guitars for sure.
Finally, who would you like to collaborate with that you haven’t with already?
JH: Really just anybody who’s talented and positive minded. I think there’s something to be said for just leaving all your avenues open. I’ve never been too specific with these things. I’ve never been like, “I want to be in that band some day.” It’s always been more like, “Just keep working hard at all the opportunities that life presents for me.” And like I said, sometimes these things come along like Rock of Ages or Cher where you’re like, “What?” There’s other things that make more sense. It was the strangest thing to learn eight finger technique when I was a kid and watch that whole scene disappear. And then all of a sudden end up with an opportunity to play in Night Ranger. I thought, “That must be meant to be.” There’s times where things feel like they were meant to be and they just work out. And there’s other times where you’re asking, “How is this even possible?” I never would’ve thought I’d be in Cher’s band, so that’s an amazing thing.
I imagine that eight finger technique came in handy for “(You Can Still) Rock in America”.
JH: Definitely. I tried my best to cop Jeff (Watson)’s parts and solos. There’s times where things make sense and the evolve, but in general, my thing is to stay productive everyday and be the best I can all the time. Then life kind of takes me to these places.
For more information on Joel Hoekstra, visit www.joelhoekstra.com.