When Tesla debuted in the 1980s, little did they know they would have to compete with a billionaire car maker for name recognition.
For those who like to rock hard, there is only one Tesla that still matters these days, and it’s the fantastic classic rock fivesome of bassist Brian Wheat, lead guitarist Frank Hannon, lead singer Jeff Keith — the original three — along with guitarist Dave Rude and drummer Steve Brown known for some of the best hard rock anthems of that “hair metal” era including “Modern Day Cowboy,” “Love Song,” “Little Suzi” and their cover of the Five Man Electrical Band’s “Signs,” the biggest hit of their career.
Tesla, with its dueling guitar melodies, raspy, Steven Tyler-like vocals of Keith and a superb knack of writing catchy arena anthems, returns to Atlantic City after a long hiatus Saturday, Jan. 24, at Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Atlantic City with former Skid Row frontman Sebastian Bach opening.
Keith took the time to talk about the band’s evolution and — most importantly — ability to rock hard and live more than 40 years after forming.
SCOTT CRONICK: It’s been a while since Tesla was here. Tell us what’s been going on in the world of Tesla since you’ve been here. It just seems like you guys don’t slow down after all these years. It’s got to feel good that not only are you getting the respect that you’ve always deserved plus you are still performing at a high level that many of your peers can’t anymore.
JEFF KEITH: We’re very fortunate for that. We’ve done four residencies (in Las Vegas) and we’re still filling the seats. We got a lot of great fans that make that possible. We never stop. 2026 is going to be a lot of fun rock and rolling.
SC: You guys have also been an anomaly in that you’ve kept most of the band together. How have you figured out how to not only stay as bandmates but friends?
JK: Because we’re brothers, and we’re actually having fun on stage and writing music together. When we’re in the studio and when we’re on stage, we’re just having a great time and it’s a real deal. There’s nothing more intoxicating than performing live on stage. And we’re just trying to take care of ourselves. We’re getting a little bit older, but we’re still having fun, and it’s working.
SC: And how about how about your voice, Jeff? You always had this this great, raspy, awesome rock ’n’ roll voice with Steven Tyler qualities about it. How is it holding up, man?
JK: You know what? It’s holding up pretty good. I’ll be honest with you: Some songs we tune down a half step, maybe a certain song down a whole step. And then there’s songs that you want to put in the set but they just don’t come off, so we don’t do them. We’re up there working on songs right now at sound check so we can throw some things in there that we haven’t played for quite a few years because we like to change it up.
And so for me, I just try to do the vocal warm-up, stopped the drinking and smoking years ago, which is very helpful. When you see a runner getting ready to run or an athlete getting ready to do something, they’re stretching their muscles out. So, you know, these are things I never used to do that I do now. And so far, it’s still working.
SC: And all those years ago when you did that Five Man Acoustical Jam and ripped out a cover of “Signs,” never did you probably think it would end up your most popular song. You play that as an encore now nearly every night. Do you appreciate that, or do you resent that at all?
JK: No, no resentment whatsoever. Are you kidding? I love “Signs.” Back in 1989, we happened to be on tour with Motley Crue, and we had a couple of nights off. We went, “Hey, let’s find a place that’ll let us do some songs acoustically.” It was starting to feel so good that the guys went, “Hey, maybe we should bring a 24-track mobile truck down there with five cameras and record it and tape it.” And we had it on the shelf for, gosh, three or four months. And then me and (former guitarist) Tommy (Skeoch) and (lead guitarist) Frank (Hannon) went to a station and played it live, and the phones were ringing off the hook … back when phones had a hook.
It was our best-selling record to date, 2 million records or so. And people love it. And we loved it. We forgot we were recording. We were just having fun. And we captured live from top to bottom. So, yeah, that’s it. That’s a great album. We’ve always been told, write songs from the heart. And then that way you’ll never resent having to play something.
SC: How do you keep things for yourself fresh every night, Jeff?
JK: Well, you got to keep the staple songs. There are staple songs that you got to play every show: “Modern Day Cowboy,” “Love Song,” “Signs.” And then we can change it up. Like I said, we are actually working on some stuff that we haven’t played, gosh, maybe in years, like even “The Way It Is. “
I’ll be honest with you, Scott, someone might say, “Hey, man, Jeff, you can’t quite hit the notes anymore.” You know what? I just get up there and sometimes be kind of clever and take the melody and calm it down a little so people get to hear that song and it doesn’t go in the “We Can’t Play It” file. We don’t want to do that. People love “The Way It Is,” so we’re going to try a lot of things like that. People aren’t there to hear the record. They’re here. You’re there. They’re there to hear you play a live performance. So, we’re going to do our best to see what songs that we can do. We call it pulling the rabbit out of the hat.
SC: Exactly. The most important thing is that you remain a truly live band. No tracks. No gimmicks.
JK: No question about it.If we can’t play it live, then we just can’t throw it in the set.Sometimes yougot to revamp something so the song can go on the set.The people are happy. The people, they’re all just very thankful and grateful that you’re just doing the song. So, you can’t hit some of the high notes?It’s not the end of the world. And we love it because, you know, it’s part of all of us growing older together. Right? It’s the real deal.
SC: What’s a tour with Tesla like now compared to 1988?
JK: Maybe a cup of coffee before check. No two cases of Pabst Blue Ribbon every day and three packs of Marlboro Reds just for me. We’re all just trying to take better care of ourselves because as long as it’s working, we’re going to keep going. Even throughout the partying days, it was always straight from the heart, the real deal. And that’s how we’re going to keep it. It’s just give it everything you got.
SC: You’ve gotten to that point where you and Motley Crue and bands from the ’80s and ’90s aren’t considered hair bands or whatever; you are now classic rock bands at this point. The test of time has said that Tesla’s not only going to stand the test of time, but you’re going to be considered one of the best, and that’s got to feel good all these years later.
JK: Yeah. It does. It does. Hey, we’re still having fun at it. Still working. Let’s rock and roll, man.
Scott Cronick is an award-winning journalist who has written about entertainment, food, news and more in South Jersey for nearly three decades. He hosts a daily radio show – “Off The Press with Scott Cronick” – 4 to 6 p.m. weekdays on Newstalk WOND 1400-AM, 92.3-FM, and WONDRadio.com. He can be reached at scronick@comcast.net.
