HEAVY Rotation: Quiet Riot’s “Cum On Feel the Noize”

Quiet Riot may widely be considered a one two-hit wonder, but the truth is, they were one of the most successful metal bands of the ’80s.

In preparation of their North American debut record, Quiet Riot was told by a record producer to record a demo version of a cover song. He insisted on ’70s glam rock outfit Slade’s hit, “Cum On Feel the Noize” from a decade earlier. “We hated it,” said drummer Frankie Banali in VH1’s 2006 rockumentary, HEAVY: The Story of Metal. “We didn’t want to do it. [Lead singer] Kevin DuBrow was dead set on not doing it.”

They purposely played the song badly in hopes that a decidedly poor attempt would get the song cut from the demo. But when Banali started with the pounding drum track, DuBrow glared at him through the glass of the studio because it sounded good–too good to be dropped.

Evidently, the producer loved the song and it was kept on their 1983 album, Metal Health. After the first single, “Bang Your Head (Metal Health)”, only reached #31 on the Billboard Hot 100 charts, “Cum On Feel the Noize” was released as a single.

We hated it. We didn’t want to do it. Kevin DuBrow was dead set on not doing it. Frankie Banali VH1’s HEAVY (2006)

It reached #5.

Then, on the last week of November 1983, Metal Health reached the #1 album position ahead of Lionel Richie’s Can’t Slow Down, The Police’s Synchronicity and Michael Jackson’s Thriller. It became the first heavy metal album to peak at the top of the charts, thanks to the success of an unrehearsed glam rock cover.

“What you have on record is the first take,” said Banali. “That was the first time that we had ever played that song.”

Just imagine what it would sound like if they tried to play it well.

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HEAVY Rotation: Warrant’s “Cherry Pie”

To most, Warrant is a one-hit wonder like so many ‘80s Sunset Strip glam bands, but despite other hit singles, their innuendo-riddled “Cherry Pie” is the song the band will most be remembered for.

As the story goes, lead singer Jani Lane received a phone call from Columbia Records president Don Ienner leading up to the release of their then-untitled sophomore album. Ienner wanted a rock anthem a la Aerosmith’s “Love in an Elevator” to be on the record–something that would get copious amounts of radio airplay. Within fifteen minutes, Lane had written the lyrics to Warrant’s most well-known single–on a pizza box. The song peaked at number 10 on the Billboard Charts and the album of the same name went double-platinum.

But with mainstream success came accusations of selling out. That three-and-a-half minute song overhauled the marketing of their second album and overshadowed other singles like “Heaven” and “Uncle Tom’s Cabin.”

I could shoot myself in the f**king head for writing that song. Jani Lane VH1’s HEAVY (2006)

Members of the band didn’t even think it was their best music. In an interview with the VH1 rock doc, HEAVY: The Story of Metal, Lane expressed deep regret for penning the track and giving it to Columbia.

“All of a sudden, the album’s called Cherry Pie, the record’s called Cherry Pie, I’m doing cherry pie-eating contests, the singles ‘Cherry Pie,'” he said. “I could shoot myself in the f**king head for writing that song.”

He later clarified that the producers had caught him on a bad day, but it seems Lane may still have had some resentment for one smash hit almost negating everything else that they ever recorded.

With the recent passing of Lane, hopefully more people will be introduced to Warrant’s music–not just a slice of “Cherry Pie.”

Rest in Peace
Jani Lane
February 1, 1964 ~ August 11, 2011

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HEAVY Rotation: Black Sabbath’s “Iron Man”

“Iron Man” is among Black Sabbath’s greatest hits and it has one of the most recognizable guitar riffs ever.

In fact, that’s how the writing of the song started. Tony Iommi wrote the riff in preparation for recording their second album, 1970’s Paranoid. Ozzy Osbourne heard the riff and his initial reaction was that “it sounded like a big, iron bloke walking about.” They named the song “Iron Bloke,” but later renamed it “Iron Man.” Bassist Geezer Butler took the title and wrote the lyrics about a man who time travels into the future and witnesses the end of the world. He tries to go back in time to warn people, but a magnetic field turns him into steel.

Unable to speak and ignored by the masses, he grows angry and takes out his rage on mankind, which happens to be the destruction he saw in his vision of the apocalypse. (And in case you were wondering, steel does contain iron.)

Now the time is here
for Iron Man to spread fear
Vengeance from the grave
Kills the people he once saved

The band’s sixth single, “Iron Man” only peaked at #52 on the Billboard charts, though in 2008, it reached #5 on Billboard’s Hot Ringtones chart. It was ranked #1 on VH1’s 40 Greatest Metal Songs, #317 on Rolling Stone‘s 500 Greatest Songs of All Time, and in 2000, a live version of the song won a Grammy for Best Metal Performance.

It’s been used in such films as Detroit Rock City, Dogtown & Z-Boys, and fittingly, Iron Man. It has also been covered by Metallica, NOFX and Marilyn Manson, and it’s been sampled by Sir Mix-A-Lot. (Yes, that Sir Mix-A-Lot.)

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HEAVY Rotation: Dio’s “Holy Diver”

“Holy Diver” is the title track of Dio’s 1983 debut album and a landmark heavy metal anthem.

Following his stint as Ozzy Osbourne’s replacement in Black Sabbath, Ronnie James Dio formed Dio in 1982. Having already fronted Elf and Rainbow in the ’60s and ’70s, Dio once again was the frontman, bringing his powerful voice to such classics as “Stand Up and Shout” and “Rainbow in the Dark” off of Holy Diver.

To this day, the song and album artwork are considered controversial. After 9/11, Clear Channel Communications sent a document to more than 1,200 radio stations listing “lyrically questionable” songs, including “Holy Diver.” At the time, renowned heavy metal DJ Eddie Trunk (also of VH1’s That Metal Show) contacted Dio, who was shocked over the uproar some 28 years after the song’s release.

In the 2005 documentary Metal: A Headbanger’s Journey, Dio spoke of song and the album cover, which appears to show a demon (the band’s mascot, Murray) standing above a cleric wrapped in chains and drowning in the ocean against jagged rocks.

The song ‘Holy Diver’ is not a violent song. It’s actually about a Christ figure in a positive way. I guess maybe a lot of people don’t know that it’s that.

The question was always, ‘Why do you have a monster killing a priest on your album cover?’ My answer always was, because I planned it this way, ‘How do you know that’s not a priest killing a monster?’

Dio is also credited with popularizing the “metal horns” hand gesture in heavy metal culture, which appears to use one’s pinky and index finger as horns. In reality, Dio learned the gesture from his Italian grandmother, who used it to ward off the evil eye when strangers gave her funny looks.

Despite the controversy, Holy Diver is considered one of the greatest heavy metal albums of all time. It was certified platinum in the United States and the title track has been covered by Tenacious D, Killswitch Engage, Children of Bodom and Pat Boone.

Yes, Christian gospel musician Pat Boone.

Rest in Peace
Ronnie James Dio
July 10, 1942 ~ May 16, 2010