Some Cleveland trailblazers deserving recognition are featured in this press release - the Cleveland musicians, writers and business innovators featured below are part of the authentic core that truly defines Cleveland as the Rock and Roll Capital of the World, and brings us the type of global appreciation that offers a sincere foundation for our future... if you can understand punk.

From Smog Veil Records:

Cheetah Chrome, Mike Hudson, and Bob Pfeifer kick off their Cleveland Confidential Book Tour in Seattle on February 17. All the dates are listed below. Want to hear straight from the guys who were there about the Cleveland scene in the late 70s through the mid 80s? Attend one or more of these events! Many are free. The first 2 people to post at the Smog Veil Facebook fan page a gig photo from one of the February dates will win a nice prize. The link for the Smog Veil fan page at Facebook is below.

Bob Pfeifer’s debut book, “University Of Strangers” is now available for pre-sale. The book also contains a DROPCARD with five new songs from Bob’s new band Tabby Chinos. You may remember Bob as the founder of Human Switchboard, maybe you paid an unheard of sum for one of the band’s early records on Clone or Square. In any event, the book details the efforts of a secret society, comprised of famous contemporary figures from the worlds of literature, show business and politics, to clear the name of Amanda Knox. A unique blend of fact and fiction the book is a spellbinding account of the violence, corruption and celebrity worship that characterize much of 21st century life.

Our copies of the book are autographed and ship around February 15.

"This book is depraved, the product of a sick mind. It's also a good novel I read from start to finish." - Alice Cooper

CLEVELAND CONFIDENTIAL BOOK TOUR HITS WEST COAST FEBRUARY 17 – 27, 2011

Chicago, IL, January 25, 2011 – Smog Veil Records is proud to announce that Cleveland Confidential Book Tour has added a stop at Seattle's Experience Music Project JBL Theater on February 17th.  The tour features three author-musicians hailing from Cleveland, Ohio including Cheetah Chrome (Rocket From The Tombs, Dead Boys, Batusis), Mike Hudson (The Pagans) and Bob Pfeifer (Human Switchboard, Tabby Chinos, former Senior Vice President A&R/Epic/Sony Records and President of Hollywood Records). Each will read excerpts from their book, answer questions from the audience and discuss their books and careers with each other. Authors will be available to sign books at each appearance. Tour stops on the West Coast include Seattle, Portland, San Francisco, Berkeley, Los Angeles, including the EMP Pop Conference at UCLA on February 26, 2011.  East Coast tour dates in April will be announced soon and will include Philadelphia, New York City, Boston, Rock and Roll Hall Of Fame in Cleveland and more.

Cleveland Confidential Book Tour (all dates may be subject to change):

Thursday, 2/17 - JBL Theater at Experience Music Project

325 5th Avenue North  Seattle, WA 98109

time: 7:00 pm

tickets: FREE!

Saturday, 2/19 - East End Club (sponsored by Reading Frenzy)

203 SE Grand Avenue  Portland, OR 97214

time: 9:00 pm

tickets: $6

Monday, 2/21 - Hemlock Tavern

1131 Polk Street  San Francisco, CA 94109

time: 6:00 pm

tickets: $10

Tuesday, 2/22 - Moe's Books

2476 Telegraph Avenue  Berkeley, CA 94704

time: 7:00 pm

tickets: FREE!

Wednesday, 2/23 - Gallery Fifty24/Noise Pop Festival

218 Fillmore Street  San Francisco, CA 94117

time: 7:00 pm

tickets: FREE!

Thursday, 2/24 - Vacation Vinyl

3815 Sunset Boulevard  Los Angeles, CA  90026

time: 7:00 pm

tickets: FREE!

Saturday, 2/26 - Experience Music Project Pop Conference

UCLA campus Los Angeles, CA

time: 1:30pm – 2:30 pm

tickets: FREE! (but conference pre-registration required)

Sunday 2/27 - Book Soup

8818 Sunset Boulevard  West Hollywood, CA 90069

time: 5:00 pm

tickets: FREE!

Cheetah Chrome - A Dead Boy's Tale From The Front Lines Of Punk Rock is the no-holds-barred autobiography of Cheetah Chrome, lead guitarist of the Dead Boys, one of the greatest punk bands ever. It’s a tale of success and excess—amazing music, legendary antics, epic drug use, and eventual resurrection—that only a true rock and roller could deliver. As a songwriter Chrome's work has been covered by artists such as Guns n Roses, Pearl Jam and the Beastie Boys. He still performs and records with Rocket From The Tombs and Batusis (with Sylvain Sylvain of the New York Dolls).  He lives in Nashville with his wife and son.

Mike Hudson will read from Jetsam and Diary of a Punk. The 32 short pieces that make up Jetsam were written and published between 1977 and 2009. His lean and unsentimental prose style is apparent in even the earliest entries here. Diary of A Punk is Hudson's autobiography.  He is the founder of the seminal American punk rock group, the Pagans, formed in 1977. His work has appeared in Hustler, the Associated Press, Master Detective, Field & Stream and many other publications here and abroad. He is currently the founding editor and CEO of the Niagara Falls Reporter, a New York tabloid specializing in politics and organized crime.

University of Strangers is Bob Pfeifer's first novel. In a sensational case that made headlines all over the globe, the American student Amanda Knox was convicted of the murder of her British roommate Meredith Kercher, in what Italian authorities described as a sadistic sexual encounter. Pfeifer's novel details the efforts of a secret society, comprised of famous contemporary figures from the worlds of literature, show business and politics, to clear the girl's name. A unique blend of fact and fiction the book is a spellbinding account of the violence, corruption and celebrity worship that characterize much of 21st century life. Pfeifer was Senior Vice President A&R/Epic/Sony Records and President of Hollywood Records. Artists he's worked with include Alice Cooper, Ornette Coleman, The Screaming Trees, also soundtracks like the Crow: City of Angels and Lion King. He is a founding member/songwriter of Human Switchboard and Tabby Chinos. He lives in Los Angeles with his son.

Authors and publishers can be found online by following these links:

http://www.smogveil.com/

http://www.voyageurpress.com/

http://www.niagarafallsreporter.com/hudsonbooks.html

Smog Veil Records was founded in Cleveland, Ohio in 1991. The label roster includes Batusis (Cheetah Chrome and Sylvain Sylvain of New York Dolls), Complaints Choir, This Moment In Black History, The New Hope v/a compilation, Peter Laughner, Pere Ubu, Tin Huey, Easter Monkeys, Pistol Whip, Unknown Instructors (Mike Watt, George Hurley, Joe Baiza, Dan McGuire, Raymond Pettibon, David Thomas), The Pagans, Teacher’s Pet, Thor, Rocket From The Tombs, Amps II Eleven, New Christs (featuring Rob Younger of Radio Birdman) and Rubber City Rebels.

For press materials or additional information on Cleveland Confidential Book Tour or any artist on Smog Veil Records please contact Fly PR:

(323) 667-1344 or flypr [at] flypr [dot] net.