By: Andrew Vaughan

VH1’s Rock 'n' Roll Fantasy Camp is must-see TV for anyone with aspiration to play in a rock and roll band. A group of music fans and amateur musicians get a chance to live like a rock star and jam with their music heroes. Rock stars that drop by the studio and help out the wannabes include: Paul Stanley of KISS, Phil Collen of Def Leppard, Marky Ramone of The Ramones... It’s what rock and roll dreams are made of. Coaching and cajoling the amateurs is the colorful Mr. Mark Hudson, a music biz veteran who’s perfect for the job. At least because he still loves rock and roll as much as he did when his mom took him to see the Beatles as a kid.

Of course you don’t suddenly get to hang with the rock elite. Hudson paid his dues, first as part of the Hudson Brothers who recorded for Elton John’s record label and had their own TV show. Then in various capacities, including: talk show music director (for Joan Rivers), songwriter (he wrote Aerosmith’s monster “Livin’ on the Edge”), and producer/writer for numerous acts including: Hanson, Cher, Carole King, Timothy B. Schmit, Bon Jovi, and his very good pal Ozzy Osbourne.

Still remember the show?
Do I?!! We were a poor family, living on welfare and my mom saved her money and we got to see The Beatles in Portland, Oregon on August 22, 1965. [I'll] Never forget the date or John Lennon with that leather cap. Wow. I knew what I wanted to be and somehow I managed to carve out a career in rock and roll. Amazing.

And you worked with Ringo for a long time?
Rock and roll was crazy in the ‘70s. I was great friends with Harry Nilsson—who famously hung out with John Lennon during his so-called “Lost Weekend” in the mid-70s. So I became friends with Ringo and ended up producing eight of his solo albums. It was a great time. John Lennon was simply a genius. The music we did with the Hudson Brothers for Elton’s Rocket Records was very Beatles influenced. When I sang “Living on the Edge” to Steven Tyler of Aerosmith for the first time, he said, "John Lennon’s in the room." So Lennon was a major influence—still is. He was my reason for writing music.

So now you help others have their rock dreams come true.
The Rock and Roll Fantasy Camp is an amazing thing. I truly love doing it. Meeting the people who come to the camps reminds me of why I got involved in music in the first lace. Their enthusiasm is infectious. So to get them gelling in a band and playing rock and roll, and then to see their faces when someone like Slash or Steve Tyler drops by is incredible. It’s dreams coming true—nothing much can beat that!

Does it all start with the song?
I was trained by Phil Ramone who is one of the all-time great producers. He took me under his wing for three years. What an education. For him it was all about the songs. You know, the song, then the musicians, and then the singer. You can have great musicians and a wonderful singer but if the song is poor, then the record will be poor. It’s as simple as that. And I’ve never forgotten that. I’ve worked as a writer with some amazing artists: Ozzy Osbourne, Celine Dion, Aerosmith, Hanson, Jars of Clay... and it’s still true. And the great artists like Ozzy understand that.

So Ozzy, cool guy?
Absolutely. He has this image but away from all that he’s one of the funniest, sweetest, kindest men you’ll ever meet. I’m great friends with Ozzy and Sharon. I worked with Sharon in England as a vocal coach for The X Factor over there. You’ll not find a family more in love. Are they different? Yeah! Are they strange? Probably. Are they beautiful? Absolutely. They stand up for each other. It’s almost like The Godfather!

“Living on the Edge” is a classic and Aerosmith nailed it.
I’d had that song for 6 years. There’s no shelf life for a great song. If you write a great song it will have its time. As a writer, if you’re honest with yourself, you know when you’ve written a good one.

While there’s not much you haven’t done in music, is there one burning musical ambition left?
You know, I’d love to work with Paul McCartney. I don’t want to sound like I’m bragging, but I think I could bring that Lennon-twist to McCartney. Will I ever get the chance? Who knows? But it’s like JFK said, “We need men who can dream of things that never were and ask 'why not?'." So why not?