Ratt
RATT singer Stephen Pearcy’s long-awaited book, “Sex, Drugs, Ratt & Roll: My Life In Rock“, will be released on May 7, 2013 via Gallery Books, an imprint of Simon & Schuster. The 288-page hardcover is described in a press release as “a jaw-dropping tell-all from the lead singer of the 1980s supergroup RATT: the groupies, the trashed hotel rooms, the drugs — and just how much you can get away with when you’re one of the biggest hair metal stars of all time.”
In the mid-1980s, RATT, alongside MÖTLEY CRÜE, POISON and QUIET RIOT, were laying down the riffs and unleashing the scissor kicks that would herald the arrival of music’s most flamboyantly debauched era. Now with “Sex, Drugs, Ratt & Roll”, RATT frontman and chief rabble-rouser Stephen Pearcy divulges all the dirty details of the era when big-haired bands ruled the world.
Stephen was primed for a life of excess from an early age — his father died of a heroin overdose when he was twelve, and by the age of fifteen, Stephen was himself a drug addict. When Stephen met the thrill-seeking Robbin Crosby, he knew he’d found his perfect partner in crime — both in music and partying. RATT’s 1984 debut single, “Round And Round”, became one of the top-selling metal songs of all time, but it was the band’s off-stage escapades that were the stuff of legend.
“Our tour bus is like our pirate ship, it’s where we rape and pillage,” said Pearcy in 1987. Now Pearcy’s memoir reveals all the rock star excess — the partying, the women, the $2,000-a-day drug habits — letting fans see into this harrowing hair-metal lifestyle and what it’s really like behind the scenes when you’re a rock star.
Famed book editor Jeremie Ruby-Strauss, editor at Gallery Books stated about what fans can expect from Stephen Pearcy’s forthcoming book: “There will be a ton of sex, mind-boggling amounts of drugs, and, of course, a whole lot of RATT and roll. There’s also stuff about him breaking both legs as a kid and whatnot, but are you seriously not more intrigued by the sex and drugs?”
In a 2011 interview, Pearcy stated about “Sex, Drugs, Ratt & Roll: My Life In Rock” — which has been in the works for more than three years: “[It will include] so many stories. The good, the bad (real bad) and the ugly.” He added, “It’s a big wakeup call to remember some things, but have to share. Some might learn something from my experiences and get something positive in the end. There are bright moments; it’s not all about Ratt ‘n’ Roll.”
Pearcy told the San Antonio Metal Music Examiner in a separate interview: “There’s lots of tales in there that people need to know or haven’t known. You know, to get the real opinion. . . It’s a real honest book. The kitchen sink is in there. It’s time to share because nobody knows what we’re about or how you got there or what you went through. I got into music by accident — realistically by accident (laughs).
When asked if his book be a rebuttal to RATT drummer Bobby Blotzer’s “Tales Of A Ratt – Things You Shouldn’t Know” autobiography or if it will be more autobiographical in nature, Pearcy said, “Both. Because when I started that band, people got the wrong perspective on so many things. That’s why we’re on the level we don’t wish to be on, by default and admission. But everything I say is going to be honest. Bob took his own side on his book. But it’s his own. It’s like when I read the Keith Richards and [Steven] Tyler books, I thought, ‘That’s how I want my book to read.’” Blabbermouth.net
Culture Brats: A good portion of the book focuses on Robbin Crosby, your relationship with him, and his contribution to RATT. Was it important to you to make everyone know his role in the band?
Pearcy: Definitely. 100%. Because as the first incarnation of RATT after MICKEY RATT had imploded, Robbin had been jamming with Jake E. Lee and myself. We were actually opening up a lot of club shows for MÖTLEY [CRÜE]. His band imploded and he was very important in the direction and the look we created and where we were going musically. I don’t want him forgotten. I want him to forever be associated as an integral part. Granted, what made RATT RATT as we know it are the surviving members and thank God we’re together doing what we do to this day. But if it wasn’t for Robbin, we could’ve had a totally different direction.
Culture Brats: There’s a reason the book’s called “Sex, Drugs, Ratt & Roll: My Life In Rock”: there are tons of pages devoted to sexual conquests and drug usage. You have any estimate on how many women you’ve been with?
Pearcy: Oh God, no. I don’t. I actually had a quota of three a day, but I did have normal relationships that did last awhile. I told myself until I was married I would just be me. It’s like a kid in a candy store. I didn’t keep track, I just knew I was going for that grab bag every day.
Huffington Post: Stephen Pearcy’s New Memoir Is Awesome. Period. Rock memoirs are a dime-a-dozen these days, and my expectations of this one were not high. But Pearcy delivers big, and if you like the rock ‘n roll debauchery kind of thing, you’ll love this thing. That said, there’s some truly moving and heartfelt moments throughout, particularly when it comes to Pearcy’s discussion of his late ‘partner in crime’ RATT guitarist Robbin Crosby, his own battle with addictions, and his daughter, Jewel.
Q: On a more serious note, you speak very warmly of the late guitarist Robbin Crosby throughout the book, but I feel like you hold back a little as his problems increase and he ultimately loses his battle with addiction. Not saying you gloss over it, but you don’t dive very deep. Tough subject, I imagine?
A: Well no, I could write 10 books and not fully cover what went down. We (the band) all went thru our own trip with the partying. I didn’t feel I had to make the negatives into a positive. Robbin was so important to the band, he was my right hand man starting RATT, as we knew and know it. I was on my own and his band imploded around the same time. Thats when we became partners in crime.
Q: Conversely, you’re frank throughout on the difficult relationship you and drummer Bobby Blotzer have always had. How are things between the two of you today? Has he read the book? He pissed? He comes off as a huge dick, which surprised me as a fan. He kind of always seemed like the chill one…
A: We (in the band) have a saying: Bob is Bob. We are brothers, and sometimes brothers fight. He hasn’t read it but I’m sure he’ll have something to say. Matters not. Bobby is a great drummer, take it as you may.
Q: I was surprised to find that you are a Duran Duran fan, but looking back on how you dressed around the time of the first album in particular, I can totally see it. I love Duran, so I was bummed to read that Simon LeBon was a dick to you at Limelight. Was that as soul-crushing as it sounds?
A: I was a bigger fan of Adam and the Ants, that’s where the pirate image came from. I wasn’t that pissed off at LeBon, it wouldn’t have bothered me if he said hello or not. We had the picture taken just to piss him off, LOL.
RATT N Roll was in full force at the Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, California on Sunday, March 24 2013, as NASCAR made its yearly visit to my backyard. 
Going to a race and concert means waking up at 5am to get to the track for the pre-race concert. For this year’s concert was L.A. Rockers RATT took the stage at 10am and kicked ass through an 11-song set.
Even though that’s early for Angelinos, over 80,000 fans showed up for the race and concert. The race itself had plenty of excitement with two drivers wrecking each other on the last lap on turn 4 heading to the checkered flag. Unfortunately, Driver Denny Hamlin hit the wall very hard and had to be taken to the hospital… he suffered a broken back.
Below are some additional photos of the concert and race. -Enjoy, Ralph
Blabbermouth.net: Bob Nalbandian, founder and publisher of the esteemed early ’80s heavy metal music fanzine The Headbanger, has struck a deal with Tokyo-based company Japanime Publishing to release all 11 issues of the Xeroxed ‘zine as ebooks. Never before has the fanzine — which featured early interviews of local and international heavy metal bands, including the very first profiles of then-unsigned Los Angeles bands METALLICA, SLAYER and MEGADETH — been available for mass distribution until now.
The first ebook will include an all-new introduction and reminiscence by Nalbandian, along with the entire contents of The Headbanger issue #1, which was released in May/June 1982. The issue features now-legendary all-female New Wave Of British Heavy Metal band GIRLSCHOOL on its cover and a review of the group’s debut U.S. show at the Whisky on April 25, 1982; colorful recaps of live performances by then-local L.A. bands RATT and STEELER; and no-holds-barred commentary on “new” albums by MOTÖRHEAD, IRON MAIDEN, RAINBOW, and the first “Metal Massacre” compilation. As a bonus, the ebook also includes the original full-page “Los Angeles Metal Report” that Nalbandian and his Huntington Beach metal comrade Pat Scott wrote for the March 1982 issue of Ron Quintana’s nationally distributed fanzine Metal Mania. It was through this “Report” that headbangers living beyond the smog of the Sunset Strip were to read the first words ever published about a then-unknown Orange County/L.A. garage band … named METALLICA!
Issue #1 of The Headbanger is now available worldwide in the Apple iBookstore and the Amazon Kindle store.
Metal Blade Records 30 year anniversary party took place on November 30, 2012 at the world famous House of Blues Sunset Strip in West Hollywood, California. Eddie Trunk and Don Jamieson from ‘That Metal Show’ hosted the show and Metal Blade Founder Brain Slagel was in attendance along with members of Metallica, Kings X and Agent Steel. The entertainment for the night was Gypsyhwawk, Sacred Reich and Armored Saint.
As we arrived to the venue, Gypsyhawk had already played and Sacred Reich was on stage jamming Black Sabbath’s ‘War Pigs’. They also played ‘American Way’ and that was it… I later found out they only played 3 songs, so we really didn’t miss much of their set.
Headliners Armored Saint hit the stage sporting some of their original 80′s armor gear along with singer John Bush wearing a wig! Their set included ‘March of the Saint’, ‘Can U Deliver’ and ‘Left Hook From Right Field’ plus a jam with a few special guests that all signed with the iconic label.
METAL SHOP would like to congratulate Metal Blade Records on 30 years of Metal and for introducing the world to some stellar bands, including Slayer, Ratt and Metallica… Here is to another 30 years! Big thanks to FULL METAL JACKIE for the tickets… You Rock!
Noisecreep: Among the many mighty metal milestones of 2012, the 30th birthday of Metal Blade Records stands as an amazing testament to the strength of metal devotion. Label founder Brian Slagel became a businessman almost by accident. He was a die-hard fan first, and editor of the fanzine New Heavy Metal Revue. Scraping together funding from money he saved while working at Sears, and a loan from his aunt, Slagel in 1982 created Metal Massacre, a Southern California-centered compilation to answer the countless label showcase collections of Britain’s NWOBHM.
From that first release, which introduced the world to Metallica and Ratt, Metal Blade Records was born. Over most of the next decade, the next installments of the Metal Massacre compilation series unveiled some of the greatest names in metal, including Slayer, Trouble, Voivod, Fates Warning, and Hellhammer.
METALLICA: The band that had the least going for it at the time of this record’s release has gone onto become the biggest rock band in the world. When Mötley Crüe bailed on Slagel’s compilation project, he offered his tape trader pal Lars Ulrich the slot if he could scrape together a band in time. Ulrich persuaded James Hetfield to join him, and for the initial release, Jamaican guitarist Lloyd Grant appeared as a guest soloist patched into the mix to play the leads. Future pressings included a different recording of the song with Dave Mustaine handling the trademark over-the-top trills.
RATT: A much more typical Southern California metal act than Metallica, Ratt were San Diego transplants to the Sunset Strip. Awestruck by Van Halen but chained down with a lean and relentlessly melodic double-guitar sound, Ratt cruised through a string of multi-platinum, platinum, and gold records and remain a musical and commercial highlight of the glam metal era.
ARMORED SAINT: Like many bands on the L.A. club circuit, Armored Saint relied heavily on image, but their studded leather armor was a far cry from the spandex and mascara of Mötley Crüe. Singer John Bush was openly courted by young Metallica, but he refused to leave his boyhood pals in this band. After Armored Saint’s early record deal with Chrysalis Records went South, Bush joined Anthrax for over a decade, and has since returned to his original armored homies.
This is a fascinating read. Check out more reviews of those auspicious debuts, in honor of three decades of Metal Blade, plus hear audio from these early recordings at Noisecreep.com.
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