Top 100 Heavy Metal and glam rock acts from the MTV era - it's still real to me (1 Viewer)

[DocHolliday]

I still listen to this (one of the only acts in this countdown besides Hanoi that I really earnestly do), in on the joke now, bashing away and not ironically or with too much nostalgia. This will absolutely still knock your teeth to the floor and sounds fresh as a daisy for something so metal. The riffs are just monstrous, and deserved their use as the introduction and bumper music for the nationally-aired MTV show Headbanger's Ball (I can't believe it hasn't gotten a shout yet. Headbanger's. With VJs posing in leather clothes and then later with Riki Rachtman of Lip Service -- the clothing company -- vein). 

I still have the Speak English Or Die cassette my friend Dave lent me in college once I had worn/used mine out. Bash bash bash bash bash. I'd reprint the lyrics from memory, but I'd catch banhammers.

S.O.D. Aside from Slayer, the greatest thrash outfit there was. 

SOD.  Freaking SOD made the list.   Now that is just awesome.  I wish I still had my SID cassette.  The riffs were monstrous.  I need to try to find that cassette or CD on eBay or something.   I mean right now.   See you all tomorrow.  

 

[rockaction]

They seemed extra wimpy back in the day or something.

lol. They did, a bit. I think I finally broke down and bought Pride on cassette. I think I liked it. I did not like "When The Children Cry" at the time. Too maudlin, I thought. Well, I didn't know what "maudlin" meant, but you get the idea. 

 

[shuke]

Liked them but Cult of Personality became huge once wrestler CM Punk started using it. 

This was huge way before that.

 

[Ron Swanson]

The AC/DC part made me think of ZZ Top... are they going to qualify for this list?  It's always weird when a band had a whole Greatest Hits album before I heard of them in the 80s.

No. No. No. No. Not glam. Not hair metal. Not metal. They manipulated MTV with some videos is about it.  Love them, but they do not belong on this list.

 

[5-ish Finkle]

I’ll say this for Aerosmith- they knew how to pick an opening act. Saw them with GnR in 88, Black Crowes in 90.

That Permanent Vacation tour was the first concert I ever attended.  Great night.  Both bands brought their A game.

the Dinner with Anthrax episode of Married…With Children is one of my all time favorites

Grinchmaster B: "Okay, ill start...Bud.  Bear."

Dan: "Dan.  Bite me!"

 

[Andy Dufresne]

Spotify - You can't get the superior album version of Wait, but you can get an interesting yet inferior studio demo version. Weird.

Edit: But if you find Wait on someone's playlist, you can favorite it.

 

[tuffnutt]

GOOD SONGS LIKE THESE----

25. White Lion

I'm sorry OK but they had three albums with some really good stuff.  This is a band that really put out a subpar effort in 1991 and thwoop! down the drain they went.

Broken Heart 
All Burn In Hell  HERE WE ARE BURNING PEOPLE IN HELL AGAIN

All Join Our Hands  that's better 
Wait my friend in hs called these cockpants 
Tell Me play this and your wife will bang you

Radar Love is it controversial to love it?  
Little Fighter
If My Mind Is Evil   not enough cowbell

8th grade me belted out Wait after my girlfriend broke up with me 

 

[plinko]

Spotify - You can't get the superior album version of Wait, but you can get an interesting yet inferior studio demo version. Weird.

Edit: But if you find Wait on someone's playlist, you can favorite it.

Their version of VVI’s Love Kills has always been the cropped up single version and that annoys me more than it should

 

[plinko]

Might not be able to get to #24 til later today. The singer is getting his throat looked at again plus I’m saddled with work

 

[Andy Dufresne]

Might not be able to get to #24 til later today. The singer is getting his throat looked at again plus I’m saddled with work

Ooh..ooh! I know who it is!

 

[foxco]

I think Wait is the 80's #1 "Hair Band" song.

Radar Love is a GREAT cover. Certainly better than the Golden Earring version.

Everyone knows that Little Fighter is a song about Greenpeace's ship Rainbow Warrior, right?

Lady of the Valley is one of their best.

White Lion's solid. 

Also really like "All You Need is Rock N Roll," nifty guitar work on that one (Vito seemed to channel EVH a lot).

And "She's Got Everything" from Mane Attraction. 

 

[raidergil]

White Lion's solid. 

Also really like "All You Need is Rock N Roll," nifty guitar work on that one (Vito seemed to channel EVH a lot).

And "She's Got Everything" from Mane Attraction. 

Vito Bratta was a fantastic player. He took EVH's tapping to another level.

If you're into solos (and how can you not be if you're in this thread) this is compilation of 10 solos. Starts at :35 

 

[raidergil]

I didn’t like White Lion much back in the day but have come to like them much more than other hair bands.   When the Children Cry is wonderful.   They seemed extra wimpy back in the day or something.   

Funny - as much as I liked Bratta they weren't a band you'd put on with your buddies and definitely wouldn't wear their shirt. And yet drummer came from Anthrax & bassist played with Black Label Society & is back with Megadeath with Ellefson gone.

 

[Leroy Hoard]

Vito Bratta was a fantastic player. He took EVH's tapping to another level.

If you're into solos (and how can you not be if you're in this thread) this is compilation of 10 solos. Starts at :35 

#3 and #4 are really good. I used to buy those cds that came with the guitar mags and for some reason don't remember Vito.

 

[Herb]

26. AC/DC

OK, nobody freak out.. Back In Black was 1980, MTV started in 1981 so we're really talking the post-BIB run of records, along with overall impact.  

This video came out six years later, when the track was reissued on Who Made Who..
You Shook Me All Night Long  No cheating!

Live '91 For Those About To Rock.. FIYAH

Flick of the Switch.. Fly on the Wall.. relatively unspectacular

Shake Your Foundations

Who Made Who, now we're talking, I love this song and the album (Maximum Overdrive soundtrack) was pretty much a greatest hits  

Blow Up Your Video.. not much to write home about.. but then came the Razor's Edge in 1990, and monster cut Thunderstruck.  Thanks Bruce Fairbairn

I saw them on this tour, in 1990, with L.A. Guns, who I SOMEHOW have ranked above them.. what can I say, I can't control the numbers.

I probably still consider them my favorite act ever, even though I don't listen to them much anymore. Saw them twice in concert, excellent both times. Who Made Who stands out for me as a song, prolly still my favorite tune of theirs. Loved the 70s stuff with Bon Scott, and while Highway to Hell got the notoriety and big sales, as an album I probably prefer Dirty Deeds. Joan Jett did a really solid cover in ~1990. A criminally underappreciated song from that album is Ride On, which also made an appearance on Who Made Who. Still pissed they didn't play it either time I saw them. 

I will take umbrage at your assessment of Blow Up Your Video. I loooove that album. Heatseeker, That's the Way I Wanna Rock n Roll, and Ruff Stuff are all stand-outs IMO, and for whatever weird reason, Two's Up is one of my very favorite AC/DC songs.

I will fight anyone that doesn't recognize Back In Black as one of the very best rock albums ever. One of my most prized possessions is the gift my then-fiancee, now-wife gave me on my 30th birthday; a vinyl copy of Back In Black with the jacket autographed in silver sharpie by every member of the band that played on that album. 

 

[Herb]

White Lion's solid. 

Also really like "All You Need is Rock N Roll," nifty guitar work on that one (Vito seemed to channel EVH a lot).

And "She's Got Everything" from Mane Attraction. 

yaasssss!!!! I still hold that album in really high regard, one of my favorites from the era. Although, even back in junior high, I hated When The Children Cry unless I happened to be gripping the hips of some 13-year old hottie (shoutout to Nicole, Sheila, and Jena!) when it played during the slow dance.

 

[plinko]

I think Wait is the 80's #1 "Hair Band" song.

Maybe we come back to this, but I think I would have almost always said "Rock Me"

You can make a case for "Round And Round" but it's played af..

 

[zamboni]

Vito Bratta was a fantastic player. He took EVH's tapping to another level.

If you're into solos (and how can you not be if you're in this thread) this is compilation of 10 solos. Starts at :35 

#3 and #4 are really good. I used to buy those cds that came with the guitar mags and for some reason don't remember Vito.

Same here - maybe he went by Vito Andolini back then.

 

[plinko]

24. Cinderella

I wanted to be able to take the time to do my boys right.. they were definitely one of my very favorites back then, and if this was just 100% personal they'd be higher, but I am trying to be as objective as I can manage, with the top 25..

So I had them above Skid Row for a while but I just thought no, Skid Row had better songs and I think they are also more etched in the public conscience.. or maybe that's just how it seems to me.  Anyway we're still a bit from Skid Row, and this feels like a good spot for these frilly warriors turned bluesy cowboys.

They were the first real rock band I saw live and they were like the freakin twin towers up there.  Awesome.  It was mostly the hair I guess, but I feel like Keifer and Brittingham must have some height.

Rob Halford came out later like a Keebler elf on a Harley

Tom Keifer's voice really worked, sounded more natural and less painful than most of the other throaty yowlers (Dean Davidson, Joe Leste...).  But it must have been painful and he sure as schitt brought it every night in concert as far as I can tell.  He started having problems and procedures after Heartbreak Station and it slowed them down for sure, what can you do...

I didn't think Heartbreak Station was particularly great but they did have momentum.

I was thinking about guys who sounded amazing but started having throat trouble relatively early, there's Tom Keifer and there's the Jawbreaker guy, maybe Cobain? not a top ten problem for him but I feel like it was out there.  

Eric Brittingham.. from Salisbury, MD, birthplace of legends.

Fred Coury, holy #### he wasn't even 20, if I knew that I forgot

Coury was born in 1967 in Johnson City, New York, to a Lebanese family. At age 5, Coury started taking violin lessons. At age 6 he participated in his first public performance. Between the ages of 7 and 9 he studied at the Beirut Conservatory of Music in Beirut, Lebanon. At age 10 he added the trumpet to his repertoire. Finally, at age 12 he started to play the drums. By the age of 13 he was playing local bars with the band Sunjammer. As a teen, Fred was accepted to Berklee School of Music in Boston, for violin.

Coury has played in other bands including London [~ex-Sixx~] and Chastain and was playing with Ozzy Osbourne in 1985 filling-in for Randy Castillo who had a leg injury, before he joined Cinderella. Fred got into Cinderella when Eric Singer [~hello again~] told him about the gig and encouraged him to audition. Fred sent in a cassette and because as far as everyone knew, according to Circus magazine, he was the drummer for Ozzy, which may have helped him score an audition.

18, filling in with Ozzy.  Master.  Of course, Ozzy also wanted Marq Torien to be his guitarist.

Doubles sadlies, you may know, Jeff LaBar passed away last year, not to mention their old touring keyboardist died on the same day. 

Statement from Jeff's family says enough..

“Jeffrey Philip La Bar of Nashville, Tennessee passed away peacefully at the age of 58 on July 14, 2021. He was born on March 18, 1963 in Darby, Pennsylvania to June and Bob La Bar. Jeff grew up in Upper Darby, Pennsylvania and went to Upper Darby High School.

“Inspired by his brother Jack to pick up the guitar, he joined the local rock band Cinderella, who rose to prominence in the late 1980s with a string of platinum selling albums. The group toured the world and had numerous charting songs and videos on MTV. Cinderella had an exceptionally strong fanbase in Japan, which was particularly special to Jeff as that’s where his mother June was born and raised. He would always take her and their family in Japan to the band’s shows there, a life highlight for both mother and son. As Jeff got older, a love of music shifted to a passion for the culinary arts, with his cooking inspired by June’s Japanese heritage. He would reinterpret dishes that were standards in the La Bar household and add a unique flair.

“Following a move to Nashville in 2004, Jeff quickly surrounded himself with a community of dear friends who he loved to host and cook for at his home there. He never forgot his Delco roots though and stayed close with all those he grew up with in the region. While he became a bit of a fan of the Tennessee Titans when he moved to Nashville, Jeff’s number one sports franchises were in his hometown, number one being the Philadelphia Eagles, as he never missed the team’s games and would always text his dad Bob during them. He would always make time to talk to his mom for hours every Sunday on the phone, reminiscing and listening to stories about June’s days growing up in Japan. He planned on moving back to Delco as his parents got older, and his mother was excited to have him return with his cooking.

“Jeff inspired many of his friends and family to get into music, notably his son and pride and joy, Sebastian. He was eternally proud of the man and musician his son became and looked forward to working on a music project with him. Sebastian visited his father in Nashville often and loved playing music with Jeff and hearing about adventures from the old days when he was on the road. An animal lover, Jeff rescued cats, spent time taking care of his fish and adored his cat Loki.

“In addition to Sebastian, Jeff is survived by his wife and best friend Debinique, with whom he created an internet radio show ‘Late Night with the La Bars,’ his parents Bob and June, brothers Jack (Alice) and David (Victoria), sister Diane (Jason), sister-in-law Lisa and many nieces and nephews. Jeff was like a second father to his siblings Diane and David growing up. Although he had many admirers, Jeff was an even bigger fan of his family and friends, seeing the absolute best in everyone he met. Rarely was there a picture of Jeff without a smile on his face. Jeff was an incredibly loving human being and will be missed beyond measure. Immediate arrangements are private and a Celebration of Jeff’s Life is being planned for close friends and family.

“In lieu of flowers, please consider donating to the Grammy’s Musicares Financial and Addiction Recovery Assistance Program https://www.grammy.com/musicares/donations

Jeff LaBar's son Sebastian plays in the band Tantric now.  He wasn't with them in their "heyday", but if anyone remembers Tantric.. they were the band Days of the New except they all quit because the main guy was a #####, and they started Tantric.  The Slaughter of turn-of-the-millenium crud rock!

Night Songs was ###### great, I don't think there's a bad song in the bunch?, Long Cold Winter wasn't as great but started out with a couple of real jams and had plenty to offer still.  Heartbreak Station, 1990/91 overall to me.. I wasn't feeling the slower, bluesier vibe or really the lyrics either, so much anymore.

They weren't able to put a fourth effort out until 1995, Still Climbing, and it's not bad, totally listenable but again the lyrics feel forced.

Shake Me
Nobody's Fool
Sign me up for this Limited series, Netflix!

Gypsy Road
Long Cold Winter   zeppy number, Tom sells it

Bad Seamstress Blues/Fallin' Apart At The Seams Live MMP 1989 - this was the next lowest band on the bill after gorkies

Don't Know What You've Got  live around then

Japan 1987 full show!  

 

[Herb]

You can make a case for "Round And Round" but it's played af..

This would be #1 with a bullet on Herb's countdown of most overrated and overplayed hair metal songs.

 

[Ramsay Hunt Experience]

Eventually, CInderella began to sound to me like a band that played unearthed Stones B-sides.  Which isn't a bad thing at all.  I took free tickets to Bon Jovi to see Cinderella open when I was in 10th grade.  I think I remember them being OK, but I was kind of preoccupied by a group of hot, slutty looking girls a few seats from me.  

 

[zamboni]

Also a shout out for Coming Home by Cinderella

 

[foxco]

Really enjoy Long Cold Winter. Aside from the songs mentioned, The Last Mile stands out to me as one of Cinderella's better tunes, really like the chorus. Simple but good. 

 

[Andy Dufresne]

Among those not yet mentioned, Heartbreak Station, Somebody Save Me, and Hell on Wheels for me.

Love Cinderella. Who's to care if I grow my hair to the sky? 

 

[Skipdog77]

Also a shout out for Coming Home by Cinderella

All time fave for me.  I grew up 5 minutes from Johnson City, NY, so always considered Fred Coury a local boy and loved that he was in Cinderella. 

Still use the Power Ride 2010 song he wrote for the LA Kings as the goal song for my kids' hockey teams. 

 

[scorchy]

24. Cinderella

Eric Brittingham.. from Salisbury, MD, birthplace of legends.

How did I not know this?  He's moved to #4 with a bullet on my list of famous people from my hometown.

I love Cinderella.  I may even prefer their bluesier stuff (or Stones-ier, as scoob wrote) to the hair metal.

 

[SteevieG]

I've always thought that Skid Row and Cinderella were two of the bands musically that could have stayed relevant after the grunge invasion.    They were both that talented.  But, alas...

 

[MindCrime]

Rob Halford came out later like a Keebler elf on a Harley

This had me Saw that tour in summer of ‘88

 

[Ramsay Hunt Experience]

It kills me that Halford made the video for Turbo and then thought people would be shocked when he came out.  I was like, "where are the Indian and the construction worker?"

 

[zamboni]

Also a shout out for Coming Home by Cinderella

All time fave for me.  I grew up 5 minutes from Johnson City, NY, so always considered Fred Coury a local boy and loved that he was in Cinderella. 

Nice - I went to college at SUNY-Binghamton.

 

[beer 30]

24. Cinderella

I wanted to be able to take the time to do my boys right.. they were definitely one of my very favorites back then, and if this was just 100% personal they'd be higher, but I am trying to be as objective as I can manage, with the top 25..

So I had them above Skid Row for a while but I just thought no, Skid Row had better songs and I think they are also more etched in the public conscience.. or maybe that's just how it seems to me.  Anyway we're still a bit from Skid Row, and this feels like a good spot for these frilly warriors turned bluesy cowboys.

They were the first real rock band I saw live and they were like the freakin twin towers up there.  Awesome.  It was mostly the hair I guess, but I feel like Keifer and Brittingham must have some height.

Rob Halford came out later like a Keebler elf on a Harley

Tom Keifer's voice really worked, sounded more natural and less painful than most of the other throaty yowlers (Dean Davidson, Joe Leste...).  But it must have been painful and he sure as schitt brought it every night in concert as far as I can tell.  He started having problems and procedures after Heartbreak Station and it slowed them down for sure, what can you do...

I didn't think Heartbreak Station was particularly great but they did have momentum.

I was thinking about guys who sounded amazing but started having throat trouble relatively early, there's Tom Keifer and there's the Jawbreaker guy, maybe Cobain? not a top ten problem for him but I feel like it was out there.  

Eric Brittingham.. from Salisbury, MD, birthplace of legends.

Fred Coury, holy #### he wasn't even 20, if I knew that I forgot

18, filling in with Ozzy.  Master.  Of course, Ozzy also wanted Marq Torien to be his guitarist.

Doubles sadlies, you may know, Jeff LaBar passed away last year, not to mention their old touring keyboardist died on the same day. 

Statement from Jeff's family says enough..

Jeff LaBar's son Sebastian plays in the band Tantric now.  He wasn't with them in their "heyday", but if anyone remembers Tantric.. they were the band Days of the New except they all quit because the main guy was a #####, and they started Tantric.  The Slaughter of turn-of-the-millenium crud rock!

Night Songs was ###### great, I don't think there's a bad song in the bunch?, Long Cold Winter wasn't as great but started out with a couple of real jams and had plenty to offer still.  Heartbreak Station, 1990/91 overall to me.. I wasn't feeling the slower, bluesier vibe or really the lyrics either, so much anymore.

They weren't able to put a fourth effort out until 1995, Still Climbing, and it's not bad, totally listenable but again the lyrics feel forced.

Shake Me
Nobody's Fool
Sign me up for this Limited series, Netflix!

Gypsy Road
Long Cold Winter   zeppy number, Tom sells it

Bad Seamstress Blues/Fallin' Apart At The Seams Live MMP 1989 - this was the next lowest band on the bill after gorkies

Don't Know What You've Got  live around then

Japan 1987 full show!  

Cinderella opened for Bon Jovi during the never ending Slippery When Wet tour for a number of shows. They played Buckeye Lake in Ohio in 1987. It was a big open field type arena where you could have a #### ton of people and just let them roam. Think Woodstock only smaller. It was May, hot as balls and we were working backstage. I see this tall skinny pale a s ghost dude walking around in full leather that looks like he is about to die. Literally asked my partner if we should call the paramedics for him because he looked so bad. We got involved in something else and I forgot about the dude until later while Cinderella was playing and I was down front to catch some of the show I look up and the dude I thought was going to die an hour before is belting out Shake Me in front of thousands of screaming fans.

Loved me some Cinderella but like you, the shine wore off at Heartbreak Station.

 

[Ramsay Hunt Experience]

Was Shake Me the last unironic use of the phrase "shake it, don't break it?"

 

[Skipdog77]

Nice - I went to college at SUNY-Binghamton.

That's awesome.  My wife got her undergrad and master's from there, and has worked at the university for over 20 years. I went to SUNY Oswego for undergrad. 

 

[Tick]

I really liked Dead Man's Road by Cinderella.  It's such a different feel than most songs by hair metal bands, who tend to have just two gears - rockin and power ballad.  The slide guitar bluesy feel to this was new to me when I heard it.

Similarly, I always kind of liked Ronnie by Metallica, just because it was a different thing than they typically do.  Interesting to hear them hit a bluesy southern sound, even if it's not what they're great at.

 

[plinko]

23. Quiet Riot  

Randy Rhoads was a SoCal musical wunderkind ---

At age 16, Rhoads and [best friend Kelly] Garni formed the band Little Women. At approximately the same time, Rhoads began teaching guitar in his mother's school during the day and playing live gigs at night. He graduated from Burbank High School, participating in a special program that allowed him to condense his studies and graduate early so he could teach guitar and pursue music full-time. Recruiting lead vocalist Kevin DuBrow and drummer Drew Forsyth, the band soon changed its name to Quiet Riot.

Forsyth had periodically played with Rhoads and Garni in the past, most notably in Mildred Pierce. DuBrow was an L.A. photographer who was not at all what Rhoads had in mind for his new band, and he was not well liked by his Quiet Riot bandmates, a situation that caused a great deal of tension within the band. Rhoads had envisioned a frontman in the vein of Alice Cooper or David Bowie, but Dubrow was persistent and would not take no for an answer. In the end, Rhoads and Garni decided that if nothing else, DuBrow shared their enthusiasm and he was hired.

Quiet Riot quickly became one of the most popular acts on the Los Angeles club circuit, and by late 1976 were signed to CBS/Sony Records. Rhoads' "polka-dot theme" became an emblem of the band, as many fans began showing up at Quiet Riot shows wearing polka-dot bow-ties and vests, emulating what the guitarist wore on stage.

While the band had a strong following in Los Angeles, Quiet Riot and Quiet Riot II were released only in Japan. The relationship between DuBrow and Garni had also deteriorated completely during the recording of the band's second album, with potentially catastrophic results. After drunkenly firing a handgun through the ceiling and engaging in a fistfight with Rhoads, Garni drunkenly [~*sniff*~] hatched a plan to shoot and kill DuBrow at The Record Plant studio while recording the album. Rhoads was left with no choice but to fire his longtime friend and band co-founder.

I am not going to paste anymore but here's that whole story  in Garni's words

Kevin DuBrow would go on to have the same effect on more than one person.  But not Rudy Sarzo (yet), he had already become buds with DuBrow, and was brought on to replace Garni. 

In 1979, Dana Strum talked Randy Rhoads into auditioning for Ozzy's band, and the rest is history there..

So Quiet Riot actually broke up for a few years, Rudy Sarzo then goes with Rhoads to Ozzy's band.  Rhoads is killed by a coked up pilot, Sarzo helps pick up the pieces with the Ozz camp but he quits after the Madman tour and goes back to Quiet Riot.

Rounding things out with Carlos Cavazo and total badass Frankie Banali, they make Metal Health, a good album, first "metal" album to top the charts and everybody's happy.

Bang Your Head
Cum On Feel The Noize
Breathless

Their music went into decline after that, and it led to problems.  DuBrow's nonstop mouth got them in trouble with a lot of peers, Sarzo quit because of all that, then Cavazo and Banali ultimately fired DuBrow.  They didn't have much success after Metal Health but I did like "The Wild And The Young"

In later years, DuBrow was back a while, Banali was really the driving force for a long time, but they are both gone, to the great state fair in the sky.. Today, Quiet Riot is Rudy Sarzo, and singing is Jizzy Pearl, from our #97 Love/Hate..

 

[rockaction]

...but they are both gone, to the great state fair in the sky. Today, Quiet Riot is Rudy Sarzo, and singing is Jizzy Pearl, from our #97 Love/Hate.

Pathos and justice, this quote. 

 

[rockaction]

Oh, I mean Jizzy Pearl singing for Quiet Riot is like the circle of life. It's perfect. 

"to the great state fair in the sky" is as good of a RIP as I've heard on this board. 

on the writing. 

 

[plinko]

no i was laughing at the pathos and justice

 

[scorchy]

When you're a 12 year old boy, does it get any better than Kevin DuBrow singing Wanna kiss your lips not the ones on your face?

 

[DJackson10]

24. Cinderella

As I've said numerious times Tom Keifer grew up about 5 mins from where I first lived. He was already big and Cinderella. First time I heard Shake Me I was hooked. I honestly can't pick a bad song from these guys. Gypsy Road, Shake Me, Don't Know What Ya Got Till it's gone, Nigh Songs and Bad Attitude Shuffle are some of my favorites. Gyspy Road live is absolutely amazing and the video for Shake Me I really like. I got to talk to Tom a few yrs back when he came to play at a very local bar. It was a benefit to save the bar and Tom knew the owner and got his start playing there a few nights a week before hitting big. Such a great guy and he was impressed some mid-late 20s guy was such a big fan and shocked I wasn't a fan do to my parents or something. Found out he and Eric Brittingham wanted to tour again with Cinderella but had said Jeff Labar the guitar player was going through his demons with the drink again and they didn't want to go on as a band without the original members.

Jeff I heard was doing good about 2 yrs ago and Unfortunately died this past July. So Unfortunately anyone who was looking forward to a Cinderella reunion is going to be disappointed. I'm so happy my guys made it big though to an extent. Tom was such a genuine guy too that night. We talked the rest of the night as I was the only one besides the owner who even knew how famous he was. He acted like I was an old friend catching up with him. We talked about a whole bunch of different topics, shared a few road stories and other fun 80s stuff, music in general and life. I also think he bought over half my drinks that night too. 

As for my favorite story of how the band got big it happens to deal with two of my favorite bands to an extent members. Gene Simmons and Bon Jovi

"Cinderella practiced in the attic of the American Legion building in Wayne, PA.[7] In a 2014 interview, Tom Keifer stated that Kiss bass guitarist Gene Simmons first took interest in the band and tried to get them a deal with PolyGram, but they were not interested. Jon Bon Jovi saw them perform at the Empire Rock Club in Philadelphia and talked to his A&R man, Derek Shulman about seeing the group. Shulman was not convinced at first either, and wanted to sign the band to a six-month development deal. But after extensive negotiations, he finally signed the band.[8][9] In 1985, with a recording contract with Mercury/Polygram Records in the works, guitarist Jeff LaBar and drummer Jim Drnec joined the band."

Also Tom Keifer from time to time does a duet with Halestorm's Izzy Hale Nobody's fool. Only good version live I've found and it's also on a Halestorm ReImagine album. However you get a great view of Izzy's um hem "assets" though

Izzy Hale and Tom Keifer Duet Nobody's Fool (Cinderella)

 

[DocHolliday]

Cinderella opened for Bon Jovi during the never ending Slippery When Wet tour for a number of shows. They played Buckeye Lake in Ohio in 1987. It was a big open field type arena where you could have a #### ton of people and just let them roam. Think Woodstock only smaller. It was May, hot as balls and we were working backstage. I see this tall skinny pale a s ghost dude walking around in full leather that looks like he is about to die. Literally asked my partner if we should call the paramedics for him because he looked so bad. We got involved in something else and I forgot about the dude until later while Cinderella was playing and I was down front to catch some of the show I look up and the dude I thought was going to die an hour before is belting out Shake Me in front of thousands of screaming fans.

Loved me some Cinderella but like you, the shine wore off at Heartbreak Station.

I been waiting for Cinderella to show up.   The first two albums are hair metal heaven.  As someone mentioned, the first album doesn’t have a bad song on it and while the second album isn’t as consistent, the songs are probably more interesting.  

Saw Cinderella a few times and they never disappointed.  What irritated me is that to see them I had to see them open for Poison a couple of times.  Cinderella was so much better than that crummy bunch of posers in Poison.  

 

[DJackson10]

Eventually, CInderella began to sound to me like a band that played unearthed Stones B-sides.  Which isn't a bad thing at all.  I took free tickets to Bon Jovi to see Cinderella open when I was in 10th grade.  I think I remember them being OK, but I was kind of preoccupied by a group of hot, slutty looking girls a few seats from me.  

That may have been Cinderella's first tour after signing their record deal as they open for Bon Jovi who got them signed 

 

[DJackson10]

23. Quiet Riot  

Randy Rhoads was a SoCal musical wunderkind ---

I am not going to paste anymore but here's that whole story  in Garni's words

Kevin DuBrow would go on to have the same effect on more than one person.  But not Rudy Sarzo (yet), he had already become buds with DuBrow, and was brought on to replace Garni. 

In 1979, Dana Strum talked Randy Rhoads into auditioning for Ozzy's band, and the rest is history there..

So Quiet Riot actually broke up for a few years, Rudy Sarzo then goes with Rhoads to Ozzy's band.  Rhoads is killed by a coked up pilot, Sarzo helps pick up the pieces with the Ozz camp but he quits after the Madman tour and goes back to Quiet Riot.

Rounding things out with Carlos Cavazo and total badass Frankie Banali, they make Metal Health, a good album, first "metal" album to top the charts and everybody's happy.

Bang Your Head
Cum On Feel The Noize
Breathless

Their music went into decline after that, and it led to problems.  DuBrow's nonstop mouth got them in trouble with a lot of peers, Sarzo quit because of all that, then Cavazo and Banali ultimately fired DuBrow.  They didn't have much success after Metal Health but I did like "The Wild And The Young"

In later years, DuBrow was back a while, Banali was really the driving force for a long time, but they are both gone, to the great state fair in the sky.. Today, Quiet Riot is Rudy Sarzo, and singing is Jizzy Pearl, from our #97 Love/Hate..

I actually liked Quiet Riot way more than most. Kevin DeBrow could sing. They have a really good documentary with Frankie about the band on Showtime where I found out Banali was talking to Debrow's widow who told him to keep the Quiet Riot Banner going in honor of Kevin and it was ok by her. A few yrs back they made James Durbin a contestant from American Idol the lead Singer he made Road Rage and Hollywood Cowboys as well as Live From Milan singing most of RIot's hits. Durbin now has a color career under Durbin and he's singing in a similar style to Ronnie James Dio. Durbin is pretty close to me as he was diagnosed with Tourette syndrome and Asperger syndrome. During my Childhood they though I had TS but later in college I was properly diagnosed with Asperger's. SO Durbin has been a huge inspiration to me. I was diagnosed about 9 months prior to when Durbin was on the show. Only season I really watched do to him competing. Wished he stayed with them but Durbin quit the band to follow his solo career and make the music in the genre his voice was made for Metal wise.

Unfortunately we lost Frankie shortly after James left the band. 

One of my favorite Quiet Riot songs though Against The Wall

 

[DJackson10]

“Jeffrey Philip La Bar of Nashville, Tennessee passed away peacefully at the age of 58 on July 14, 2021. He was born on March 18, 1963 in Darby, Pennsylvania to June and Bob La Bar. Jeff grew up in Upper Darby, Pennsylvania and went to Upper Darby High School

Jeff LeBar I forgot went to Upper Darby High School where I would've gone before I moved. I moved before 5th grade to the rival township. My produce manager went to UDHS and graduated with Jamie Kennedy and Tina Fey. Tina was in a few classes and was very quite. Jamie is really good friends with my produce manager and when he did a tour and comeback a few yrs ago a coworker and myself were invited to tag along and meet Jamie. 

Jeff use to come into my store to shop for awhile before he fell ill and I didn't see him at all for awhile. After I heard about what Sebastian was doing tried to get into Tantric but just never liked them 

 

[DJackson10]

It kills me that Halford made the video for Turbo and then thought people would be shocked when he came out.  I was like, "where are the Indian and the construction worker?"

I wasn't alive yet but hearing some of the songs prior to him coming out and reading he thought fans would be surprised was a good laugh. Like seriously dude you wrote a bunch of songs singing about guys packages and what you'd do with them in a subliminal way. Why do you think anyone would be surprised. Now if he said he was shocked how welcoming and accepting everyone was to him coming out I'd agree with him there. 

 

[DJackson10]

They played Buckeye Lake in Ohio in 1987. It was a big open field type arena where you could have a #### ton of people and just let them roam. Think Woodstock only smaller. It was May, hot as balls and we were working backstage. I

Here in the tristate area in Camden NJ we got The Pavillion which is a similar venue. However they have an inside theatre area  with huge glass windows they put up during the winter to make an indoor theatre. Glass is removed during the warmer shows. Could be a better set up as the lawn is on this huge hill and if you sit too high part of the roof blocks the view and depending where you sit you can end up behind a pillar. Also the screens they use for the outside have to be from the 90s and not upgraded since so they could use some updates. 

 

[Ramsay Hunt Experience]

Now I want to play in a succession of bands named after women's lit classics.

"Hello, Cleveland.  We are The Joy Luck Club!"

 

[rockaction]

Now I want to play in a succession of bands named after women's lit classics.

"Hello, Cleveland.  We are The Joy Luck Club!"

Lol.

Or the reverse. "Ladies and gentlemen, The Bostonians!"

Cinderella's name might have actually came from adult films, if we're to believe the story of the band's name from the band themselves. At least, such was the rumor around '88 or so about what they credit to. I may have the story totally confused, but I remember people saying they said it had something to do with pornographic material of the same name. As a youth, I might have watched said film. 

If you wanted it more like real life, you could start with bands or albums named after Russ Meyer movies. There have been one or two on the list so far -- probably more. 

 

[TripItUp]

Cinderella damn near makes my top 10.  Big fan.

 

[TripItUp]

I recall trying to listen to Quiet Riot's lesser known stuff and didn't really dig it.  The ranking seems appropriate as they had some bangers and were pioneers of sort.

For me, Cinderella > Quiet Riot but that could've been a generational thing.