Anvil's Lips: I don't regret turning down Motorhead

Steve “Lips” Kudlow has spoken about the time he was asked to tour with Motorhead in 1983.

He recalls Anvil got their first gig opening for Motorhead in 1981 – and says that he and frontman Lemmy instantly clicked when they first met.

He tells Iron City Rocks: “We hit it off as people really well, and Lemmy was impressed with me.”

Lips says Motorhead’s management approached him to replace Eddie Clark on tour in 1982. But he turned down the offer, saying the band were in the middle of writing Forged In Fire and were under contract to finish the album.

He adds: “I couldn’t be in two places at once. It wasn’t possible to do it. I don’t regret the decision and at the end of the day, Lemmy really respected the fact that I stuck to my guns, which was his main philosophy. He just thought, ‘You’d fit in with me no problem, because we’re from the same tree, the same branch.’”

The 59-year-old recently said he’s no plans to call time on Anvil, and that they’re busier than ever. The band will tour Europe with Dirkschneider next month before their headline US tour in May and June.

Anvil release 16th album Anvil Is Anvil today (February 26).

Anvil tour dates 2016

Feb 27: Sundsvall Folket Hus, Sweden (Sold Out)
Feb 28: Stockholm, Sweden - Fryshuset Klubben
Mar 01: Helsinki Tavastia, Finland
Mar 04: Jyvaskyla Lutakko, Finland
Mar 05: Vaasa Rantasipi, Finland
Mar 08: Tallin Factory, Estonia
Mar 10: Warsaw Progresja, Poland
Mar 11: Leipzig Hellraiser, Germany
Mar 12: Markneukirchen Music Hall, Germany
Mar 13: Ludwigsburg Rockfabrik, Germany
Mar 16: Istanbul Garajistanbul, Turkey
Mar 17: Sofia Music Jam Club, Bulgaria
Mar 18: Thessaloniki Principal Club Theatre, Greece
Mar 19: Athens Gagariin 205, Greece
Mar 22: Cologne Essigfabrik, Germany
Mar 23: Bochum Zeche, Germany
Mar 25: Ostrava Garage, Czech Republic (Sold Out)
Mar 26: Zlin Masters Of Rock Cafe, Czech Republic
Mar 27: Prague Meet Factory, Czech Republic
Mar 29: Budapest Barba Negra, Hungary
Mar 31: Munich Backstage, Germany
Apr 01: Burglengenfeld, Germany - VAZ
Apr 02: Memmingen, Germany - Kaminwerk
Apr 03: Pratteln, Switzerland - Z7
Apr 05: Madrid, Spain - La Riviera
Apr 06: Pamplona, Spain - Sala Totem
Apr 07: Barcelona, Spain - Razzmatazz 2
Apr 12: Tilburg, Netherlands - Dudok
Apr 13: Manchester, England - Academy
Apr 14: Newcastle, England - Riverside
Apr 15: Sheffield, England - The Cooperation
Apr 16: Buckley, England - Tivoli
Apr 17: Norwich, England - Waterfront
Apr 18: London, England - O2 Academy Islington
Apr 21: Hamburg, Germany - Markthalle
Apr 22: Heidelberg, Germany - Hallo 02
Apr 23: Geiselwind, Germany - MusicHall
Apr 24: Berlin, Germany - Postbahnhof
May 12: Worcester Ralph’s, MA
May 13: Long Branch Brighton Bar, NJ
May 14: Brooklyn Black Bear, NY
May 15: Rochester Bugjar, NY
May 18: Lombard, IL - Brauer House
May 20: Denver, CO - 3 Kings
May 21: Salt Lake City, UT - Metro Bar
May 26: Spokane, WA - The Pin
Jun 01: Los Angeles Whisky, CA
Jun 02: Las Vegas Vamps, NV
Jun 03: San Diego Brick By Brick, CA
Jun 04: Phoenix Pub Rock, AZ
Jun 09: Dallas Gas Monkey, TX
Jun 11: Austin Cowboy Harley Davidson, TX
Jun 12: New Orleans Southport Music Hall, LA
Jun 15: Atlanta The Earl, GA
Jun 16: Newport Southgate House, KY
Jun 17: Indianapolis 5Th Quarter, IN
Jun 18: Cleveland The Foundry, OH

Former TeamRock news desk member Christina joined our team in late 2015, and although her time working on online rock news was fairly brief, she made a huge impact by contributing close to 1500 stories. Christina also interviewed artists including Deftones frontman Chino Moreno and worked at the Download festival. In late 2016, Christina left rock journalism to pursue a career in current affairs. In 2021, she was named Local Weekly Feature Writer of the Year at the Scottish Press Awards.