Rock ‘n’ Roll Fantasy Camp: where anyone can jam with legendary rock stars

Have you ever dreamed of jamming with your favorite rock star? David Fishof is making that dream a reality this February in Los Angeles.

Fishof, the son of a cantor who survived the Holocaust, grew up surrounded by Jewish liturgical music. As a kid, he watched his older brother’s rock band gain attention from classmates and thought he wanted to be a rock star himself. First, he picked up a pair of drumsticks but couldn’t keep a beat, so he tried bass, but the groove wouldn’t move. When he tried a guitar and couldn’t strike a chord, he had a hunch performing wasn’t in the cards.

“I gave up and realized how much work these musicians have to do,” Fishof said in a phone interview. “You have to dedicate yourself to hours and hours a day, so I decided to be in the background instead.”

Now a music agent, Fishof still looks back at the kid who wanted to be a rock star. His lifelong dedication to the industry prompted him to launch the first Rock ‘n’ Roll Fantasy Camp in 1997, which allows people from all walks of life and levels of musicianship to jam with their musical heroes.

Jam with rock ‘n’ roll giants

The camp will return to Los Angeles this year from Feb. 19-22, featuring a virtuoso ensemble for campers to jam with, including Stewart Copeland (The Police), Skunk Baxter (Steely Dan, The Doobie Brothers), Steve Stevens (Billy Idol), Nita Strauss (Alice Cooper), and Leland Sklar (James Taylor). At the end of the camp, attendees will have the opportunity to perform at the storied venue Whisky a Go Go.

Counselors at this year’s camp will also include Vinny Appice (Black Sabbath, Dio), Derek St. Holmes (Ted Nugent), Valerie Franco (Spinal Tap), Tony Franklin (The Firm), Tommy Black (Scott Weiland), Jimmy Vivino (Conan O’Brien), Ashley Dzerigian (Filter), Rafa Moreira (Paul Stanley), Jennifer Oberle (Sarah McLachlan) and Britt Lightning (Vixen).

“I’m excited about this camp,” Fishof said. “We put them through a lot. Let me tell you, it’s not a layup. Our musical director meets with campers in advance, provides them with the music to learn, and covers beginner to advanced levels. She can notice how to group you into the right bands so that you’ll do well.”

Paving his own path in the industry

Before making it big as a music agent, Fishof worked booking acts at casinos. Later, he pivoted to booking and representing sports stars, representing NFL legends Phil Simms, Mark Bavaro, Vince Ferragamo, and Jack Reynolds, and baseball stars Lou Piniella, Dave Magadan, and Randy Myers.

Although he loved representing athletes, he missed a certain creative energy, so he switched to booking rock stars, bringing what he learned in sports entertainment to his new clients.

When he first started, people still thought of him as a sports agent, but that changed in 1986, when he booked a tour that reunited The Monkees, who had been split up for more than a decade. Fishof worked on the floor below, along with Bob Pittman and Tom Freston, the media executives who were central to establishing MTV. The scrappy young network at the time had purchased “The Monkees” TV series and planned to air reruns, so he went upstairs to talk with the executives about his upcoming tour with the group.

“I’ll never forget that moment with Bob Pittman, where he said to me, ‘Sit down, kid. I thought you were a sports analyst. I see you in the elevator every day.’ I told him, ‘Yes, but I’m doing The Monkees.’ He then said, ‘Okay, I’ll make a deal. You promote my new network in all your ads just so people can watch the show on MTV, and I’ll promote your tour on MTV.’ I said yes, of course, but I don’t think they knew how powerful they were at the time, and that was probably the first concert tour they promoted,” Fishof said.

The tour sold 30,000 tickets in Detroit and 28,000 in Chicago, boosting his name recognition. After he helped reunite The Monkees, he was on a revival kick and contacted former Beatle Ringo Starr about going back on the road, as Starr was looking to change his lifestyle after entering rehab in 1988. Fishof approached Starr in London with a pitch to put together an all-star group. He agreed, and they assembled the first Ringo Starr & His All-Starr Band lineup for a 1989 tour that featured Joe Walsh (The Eagles), Dr. John, and Levon Helm (The Band).

The tour, which Starr personally invited Fishof to join, was another success.

During the stint, Fishof came to appreciate the camaraderie among the musicians. He began to wonder — what would happen if rock stars of this caliber came together and shared this communal experience with the public?

Women and girls who rock

Fishof said one of the more rewarding aspects of connecting everyday musicians with the iconic stars who tour the world is seeing people from different backgrounds come together around rock and roll. He has also seen an increase in girls and women guitarists attending camp, a trend he first noticed rising right before the coronavirus pandemic. He said the pandemic was another factor contributing to the increase, noting that people had to stay home and seek new hobbies, and musical instruments were a common choice.

According to a press release, more than 40% of Rock Camp participants are now women, a development Fishof welcomes, noting that men have historically dominated the industry. Fishof said he was conscious of that and has worked to include other women rock stars at the camp as mentors and players, including Nancy Wilson and Lita Ford. Musical director Lightning first proposed offering women-only camps, including one dedicated to songwriting. Fishof added that it’s common to see women and girls take the curriculum, then return the next year and join the mixed camp.

“It’s not just a boys club, and you’re seeing that more now,” he said. “Women guitar players, and a whole new generation also playing drums, and it’s incredible how many women are now saying, ‘Hey, I can get into this.’ You’re seeing some incredible musicians and bands also adding more women. It’s beautiful.”

The camp is designed to help musicians develop new skills, whether by playing alongside iconic musicians or learning from fellow program participants. What Fishof hopes this camp will do, though, is inspire musicians to pursue their professional goals.

“If you were a band in high school or college, this camp will reinvigorate you to start another band, write music, tour, or teach music,” Fishof said. “You’re learning from the best, and you can tell people you played with the best, and in these four days, we can give you that experience that you can’t get anywhere else.”

For more information on how to sign up for camp, visit rockcamp.com.