You know what happens when you connect a frogs leg to a 12-volt battery; it twitches right? Imagine what would happen if you ran 6000 volts through your cat when it wasn't looking? It'd go beserk right? That's what Hanoi Rocks are like on stage!!
- Dave Dickson - Kerrang! Nov 82
How's that for an introduction? I don't think I could have said it better. This is how he described a very early performance of Hanoi Rocks at the Greyhound Club in Fulham, UK in November 1982. Who are Hanoi Rocks you may ask? A huge influence on popular music in the 80's and to this day. Read on.....................
Hanoi Rocks were during their short life span was one of the (if not thee) most exciting and refreshing bands to come along on the European scene, and later the world.
It all started in 1975 when Matti Fagerholm a.k.a. Michael Monroe met Antti Hulkko aka Andy McCoy in the basement of a church. They had dreams of making it big in Rock and Roll and promised to one day form a band. A couple years passed and Michael eventually left home and moved to Stockholm and started a band called Nymphomaniac, a punk band. Completely chaotic the band disintegrated after a short time and Michael moved back to Helsinki. The Summer 79 saw Michael back in Stockholm. Later that year they moved back to Helsinki and Michael met Jan Stenfors aka Nasty Suicide through Andy McCoy. Andy was in Pelle Miljoona at this point. On a bus trip one day trying to come up with cool names Andy suggested "Chinese Rocks" after the Johnny Thunders song and then "Hanoi Rocks" and the name stuck.
Michael and Nasty began touring , approx 10 gigs around Finland, with the first and last (of that year) being in Helsinki with Stefan Piesnack (guitar), Nedo (bass) and Peki Senola (drums). It was at this first gig that Seppo Vesterinen, saw the first Hanoi Rocks Line-up and saw the potential and offered to manage them. He continued until May 19, 1985. The second gig was watched by Andy McCoy and he was very enthusiastic abound getting a band together and wanted to be a part of this new band. Punk was dying and metal was a little exciting but not over the top, not fun and spontaneous. What would happen if you fused the energy of punk and the loudness of metal? I hate to give comparisons but if you threw 1 cup of the New York Dolls , 1 cup of the Dead Boys and added a dash of Alice Cooper into a blender on puree ........hint hint
The Finns then moved to Stockholm again and decided to replace the "other 3 guys" as Michael put it. Hanoi Rocks was now comprised of Michael, Andy and Nasty. In came Sami Takamaki aka Sam Yaffa , who got the gig at 16 because Andy lost the phone number to the original bass player in Stockholm. And the lineup was completed with the addition of Jesper Sporre aka Gyp Casino. Andy lived with his girlfriend and Gyp had an apartment but the other 3 guys lived pretty much on the street or in subway stations and doing very low paying jobs to survive. But survive they did. And rehearse.
Hanoi Rocks First Publicity Photo - 1980
Hanoi's first single was I Want You / Kill City Kills 7" and it was released under the name Hanoi Rocks with Andy McCoy in the fall of 1980 and is now worth a considerable amount to collectors.
In September of that same year they went into a studio to record Bangkok Shocks, Saigon Shakes, Hanoi Rocks with Michael and Andy (the Muddy Twins) producing. It was released in the spring of '81. The name of the LP came from Jim Pembroke who was in a Finnish progressive rock band called Wigwam and had written a song called Saigon Shakes for Hanoi Rocks but was recorded by the Hurriganes. Jim later mentioned the future album title and it stuck. Michael has said that their life on the streets in the beginning had help shape their sound and attitude.
The second album, Oriental Beat, got great reviews all over Europe and they toured to support it. One gig again at the Greyhound Club , got them a Japanese record deal with Mercury Polygram. Hanoi Rocks became huge in Japan, and it probably started with this Magazine ad in 1981.
Hanoi Rocks relocated to London in 82 and at another gig being supported by the Lords of the New Church, this time at the Zig Zag Club in June, one audience member accosted Michael Monroe and claimed that he was a better drummer than Gyp Casino. Michael informed Andy and they gave the forward fan a test rehearsal. That lucky fan was rather impatient and eagerly awaited the bands decision and called the bands hotel constantly, prompting Nasty to tell him to "Fuck Off"!! That fan was Nicholas Dingley, aka Razzle (RIP). He got the job. Gyp was about to be canned anyway as Andy was not fond of him as a musician and a person and they even had a fight onstage. He looked bored all the time and apparently could not play very well (though may years later in '96 he would play with Andy again).
Hanoi Rocks embarked on a European tour commencing at the Paradiso in Amsterdam...the city of excess. This was their first outside of the UK or Scandinavia. Hanoi Rocks' agency booked a tour of Israel, India, Hong Kong, Japan and Thailand (including a holiday at Pataya Beach). (Hanoi Rocks was the first band to play in New Delhi, India!!!). In Japan, a love affair began that continues to this day. In the fall of 82, they released a compilation album of out takes, b-sides, and non-album singles. This compilation became Self-Destruction Blues . A Classic!!
On May 16, 1983, they released a fantastic album called Back To Mystery City. Kerrang! gave the new album a glowing review. The success of this album led to the recording of a concert at the Marquee, in December. This album, All Those Wasted Years , was released to coincide with the home video of the same name, which was released by Sony. This concert was given an excellent review by Melody Maker in the issue of January 7, 1984 which you can read in the booklet of the Geffen re-issue that was released 5 years after the original release. Now major record companies were interested in the band and soon Hanoi Rocks signed a deal with CBS in June of 83 for a 3 album worldwide deal to the tune of 150,000 pounds. CBS demanded that on the next record , Two Steps From the Move , there should be a song with hit potential, basically a cover tune, and CCR's "Up Around The Bend" was chosen. To be honest, that song, is not as solid as Hanoi's own material on the album! The album was recorded at Phase One in Toronto, Canada and it was produced by Bob Ezrin (aka Toronto Bob) who had just completed recording Alice Cooper's 1983 album DaDa. To celebrate the completion of the record, Hanoi played Larry's Hideaway (which was the first North American show)in Toronto and then went to play the Danceteria in New York City.
Hanoi went to Japan for the second time in the summer of 84 and completed another tour of the UK though the newly recorded Two Steps From the Move had still not been released yet. It would be released later in the fall of '84, maybe to coincide with the US tour which began in November. Nothing could stop them now. Airplay, MTV & Much Music (in Canada) heavy rotation of "Up Around the Bend" and great reviews helped build momentum. I honestly feel as a music fan in North America that the album did not get promoted very well, if at all. Still the album charted very well in Canada peaking in the top 10 of a local music magazine. And remains my favourite to this day....some 17 years after its release. It could have been released yesterday as it sill sounds vibrant and timeless.
The tour was underway and during one of the gigs in New York, Michael broke his ankle, jumping off the drum riser. But the band played on with Michael putting ice on his ankle and then playing Toronto at the infamous El Mocambo. Next was Detroit, Boston, Chicago (Dec 2 Razzle's Birthday, the audience sang Happy Birthday) & Cleveland. I have the Boston show on video and it's eerie looking back at it now, as it was probably the last footage of Razzle alive. Atlanta, Georgia had to be cancelled. They flew to Los Angeles where Motley Crue gave a party for the band as they had become friends when Motley Crue played the Donnington Festival in the UK earlier that year.
On the 8th of December, just six days after Razzle's 24th birthday, he accompanied Vince Neil , who was arrested before on drunk driving charges(!?), to the liquor store . They were zooming down the street in Vince's red 1972 Pantera when suddenly Neil lost the control of his car and crossed into the northbound lanes and was struck by two other cars. Razzle was taken to South Bay Hospital in Redondo Beach. Neil wasn't injured. Tommy Lee (Motley Crue Drummer) heard the crash and rushed outside to see what had happened. He saw Vince sitting on the curb and Razzle's sneaker in the middle of the street. Neil was arrested on a Driving Under Influence...yet again. He was soon released on $2500.00 bail. Nicholas Dingley, died at the hospital several hours later, which would have been Dec 9 (at least in his native Isle of Wight home) as his headstone reads. And how did Vince fare? He was now charged with Vehicular Manslaughter. He was convicted in July 1985, and was sentenced to 30 days in Jail (which was commuted to 20 days in which time he washed cars in a minimum security facility and supposedly had Playboy Playmates as visitors) and was fined $2.6 million in compensation fees. Apparently the Judge stated that in order for the amount to be paid Vince had to continue as a musician. Razzle could not as his powerhouse drums were silenced forever.
According to Kerrang Editor Paul Elliot, Vince Neil got away "...with a blight on his reputation which he has done little to acknowledge as of yet." Vince Neil summed it up best I think we he said "I was the O.J. of the early 80's...I bought my way out of jail ." For Hanoi Rocks , it spelled disaster. It seems Vince got away with a lot more than Hanoi Rocks did. Nuclear Assault (American Thrash Band) wrote the song Butt Fuck about Vince Neil and the jail sentence he received. Alas, I guess money really does change everything.
Mike, Andy, Sam and Nasty were devastated and the rest of the tour was cancelled. They did however keep their promise and did two gigs in Helsinki. Those gigs were part of the Europe-A-Go-Go television broadcast on January 5. At first Tommy Lee (Motley Crue drummer) had promised to play on those two gigs but it didn't work out. I personally thought this would have been insulting. From London they found Terry Chimes (ex-Clash), they rehearsed three or four times and the new line-up was ready .
Both gigs in Helsinki (January 1985) were dedicated to memory of Razzle. In spite of the recent tragedy the gigs and the broadcast went over very well and there are numerous bootlegs available. A great show but very emotional. Sam had decided to leave Hanoi Rocks already before the US tour and those gigs were his last with Hanoi Rocks.
Andy went to Sri Lanka with new girlfriend (and Stiv Bator's ex-wife) Anastasia Maisoneuve(RIP) and left Mike and Nasty in London to find a new bass player. They hired Rene Berg, who was quite talented in his own right. Rumour has it that he did not work out well at all and he thought he should call the shots. Anyway with the addition of Rene, the final lineup was complete. Michael stated several years later that the replacements "abused the situation and were along simply for the ride". But they managed to cut some demos which were later released on the Lean On Me LP in 1992.
Michael wanted to quit at this point and was not interested in continuing. To quit would have been a good idea, but they were convinced to do a small tour of Poland culminating with the Rockerina Festival in May 85. The feeling was not the same. Michael summed up it best when he said , "when your family dies, you don't hire new members".
The last gig was recorded on May 19, 1985 as the Rock and Roll Divorce LP, a sad testament to the mighty Hanoi Rocks. They were supposed to appear on Channel 4's ECT but later decided to call it quits before appearing. Andy did not want to tell CBS that they had broken up in order to receive some more money. When they did however CBS asked the members to record some demos. Michael recorded several tunes with Stiv Bators and they never saw the light of day until they were released as bonus tracks on Michael's solo CD Peace of Mind that was reissued in 1998. Several years had passed and in 1989 Axl Rose of Guns N' Roses released all of the Hanoi lp's (except Two Steps, as CBS still owns the North American rights) on CD, completely remastered on their own Uzi Suicide label. This was the first time Hanoi's entire catalog was available on CD in North America. Guns N Roses, Faster Pussycat, Bang Tango & Skid Row all cited Hanoi Rocks as a major influence musically where as the rest of the late 80's Metal bands obviously drew only visual influences. Sebastian Bach, even recorded a CD with Andy McCoy in 1992 but that has still not been released. Since 1989, every other year there seems to be a new Hanoi compilation out there just proving you can never get enough of a good thing.
I would like to add though that many people thought of Hanoi as a Glam band, which is a term I despise and lumped them into the horde of 80's hair bands. I do believe however that Hanoi Rocks has stood the test of time. Hanoi continued with the torch lit by the New York Dolls and Alice Cooper in the 70's. If only the bands that followed paid more attention to music than hair dye, maybe some people would still know who they were. And in the words of Michael Monroe at the Dec 19, 1983 Marquee show...
