INTERVIEW: Tesla and Steelheart singers join forces for a Foghat classic
Jeff Keith, the vocalist for Tesla, and Miljenko Matijević, the vocalist for Steelheart, began their friendship a few years ago after both of their bands appeared on the Monsters of Rock Cruise. At the time, the two singers realized they both have an enduring love for the popular band Foghat. So, a few years later, once again meeting each other at Monsters of Rock, they decided to join forces and begin a recording project together.
That’s when their unique take on “I Just Want to Make Love to You” came about, and the cover tune has become one of the most memorable songs of the fall season.
Keith said he has been a longtime fan of Foghat, with his love for the band going back more than 50 years. Keith actually remembers getting up on stage once with Foghat and singing “Slow Ride” with the group. For Matijević, who goes by Mili, his introduction to the band came in one of the most un-rock venues of all time: the library.
“I used to go to the Greenwich Library and listened to the vinyl records,” Matijević said in a joint Zoom interview with Keith. “That’s where I used to learn about Foghat and all those bands, but then when the live version came out, that was it for me.”
Matijević remembers the Monsters of Rock Cruise approximately five years ago when he first met Keith and their friendship began. He was smoking a cigar and drinking some Champagne with his crew, and Keith walked by.
“We just met, and we just clicked,” Matijević said. “It was hilarious, funny … and we just had a great time. And since then, we just developed a great relationship. I even said it back then, ‘Oh man, we should do a song together.’ But nothing developed until the last time we both played Monsters of Rock. I did an acoustic set, and he was doing [a set] with his band. And then we got connected again, and I said, ‘Jeff, let’s do a song. Let’s do a song. What do you want?’ I remember Jeff was talking about Foghat, and I know he loved them so much. And I like Foghat, of course. Then at my acoustic show, he comes up on stage, and I say to the audience, ‘We’re going to do a song together.’ And he starts singing, ‘I don’t want you to be no slave.’ And then I said, ‘It was f—ing great, man.’ That was it.”
Matijević knows his way around the studio, so he immediately seized on the opportunity. A call went out to Keith on a Sunday with a request to meet up; the Tesla singer didn’t waste time. By that Wednesday, Keith and Matijević were in the studio together.
“I was like, ‘Oh shit, I’ve got to get my shit together,’” Matijević said. “He came Wednesday, sang his ass for four days. We were done the first day, but, of course, you have to keep singing. That’s great; that’s what we do. We got some amazing vocals. We did nothing but laugh, eat, drink coffee, a couple of beers. It was fun rock ‘n’ roll, and that’s the way records should be made.”
Keith added: “I have a lot doubts about a lot of things, but there’s no doubt about it, we just hit it off.”
The Steelheart singer called up the Tesla singer one more time and invited him back to the studio to take some professional photographs and record an interview for the debut of the single. Instead, their chemistry was off the charts, and they decided to record an entire music video.
“He knows how to do the technology, but he’s old school and real,” Keith said. “He keeps the main drive behind all this, and he produces, engineers. It’s all Mili.”
Matijević added: “I’m excited to do another song with Jeff and also some originals. Let’s just see where it goes, but for me, yes, it’s definitely important to keep recording.”
By John Soltes / Publisher / John@HollywoodSoapbox.com
“I Just Want to Make Love to You” by Jeff Keith and Miljenko Matijević is out now. Click here for more information.
