Talk:Blackie Lawless

Untitled

From what he said he likes those bands not necessarily influenced by those, I don't think you can hear much Beatles, Black Sabbath or AC/DC influence in WASP music. Also those sentences sound a bit awkward, two times influence.

--Delpino 22:42, 3 Nov 2004 (UTC)

His last name must be Duren not Duran because his uncle's name is spelt like that, see entry.

--delpino 09:11, 13 Mar 2005 (UTC)

This article is atrociously written. Some editing is necessary, maybe. --User:bero6122 1:53, 11 July 2005 (EST)

""We Are Sexual Perverts." It is not known for sure if they were serious when saying it though. It is believed by many they said it for shock value, but that is the most frequently used meaning of the acronym known." I thought "We Are Satan's People" was the most common one?!

--I just added the part about the first W.A.S.P. album being actually, physically etched with the words "We Are Sexual Perverts." I HAVE THIS ALBUM in my collection, and I can PROVE that this is true. I don't know if it was a gimmick or what, but I DO KNOW that the band's first album (at least the pressing I have) has those words carved directly into the vinyl. I can't believe nobody's said this before. --JOlcott

Devil's Sign

Gene Simmons never used the "Devil's Sign", so he couldn't have adapted it from Lawless. Simmons often used the "hang loose" sign on stage, which was frequently taken to be some sort of occult hand sign. However, it was Ronnie James Dio who first used the "Devil's Sign" on-stage and he took from his grandmother. (The sign is, in fact, a common European folk sign, used to ward off evil and the Evil Eye). 220.233.178.130 (talk) 14:51, 13 March 2008 (UTC)

I concur. This symbol is commonly attributed to Ronnie James Dio, and he sated in one of those VH1 metal specials that he got it from his Italian grandmother who used to waive it in his face when he misbehaved as a child. 141.149.179.80 (talk) 03:19, 1 April 2008 (UTC)

Apparently the only thing consistent in Dio's explanation is his grandmother; the actual usage of the sign in his description varies quite a bit, haha.

And there was an old picture of John Lennon doing the same sign, wasn't there? Max Dagger (talk) 01:55, 5 July 2008 (UTC)

I'm old enough to remember clearly back to 70s metal. I never saw anyone use this gesture in a music context until Ronnie Dio did. Others may well have done so on stage before, but he was the first to use it as a kind of trademark. Absolutely have no recollection of anyone preceding him in its use within heavy metal. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Leapso (talk • contribs) 12:09, 3 September 2008 (UTC)

Blackie was born in Florida

he moved to NY at the age of 6. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 69.131.210.166 (talk) 04:03, 5 May 2008 (UTC)

Recent Times

The article's author suggests that stories of use of mobile phone cameras etc being discouraged during the "Crimson Idol" show were exaggerated or incorrect. I was at one of the shows on that tour, and stage crew were actively discouraging the use of such items, shining torch-light on "offenders" while the band was actually playing, and insisting they desist from such use. Whether these people were ejected or had phones confiscated, I have no idea, but free use of such items was definitely not allowed at the show I attended. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Leapso (talk • contribs) 12:05, 3 September 2008 (UTC)

Ok, I know it's me just being easily amused, but does anyone else see the irony in Blackie's objection to the line from Obama about clinging to religion and guns? I mean, wasn't it these very people clinging to religion and guns who were taking shots at him in the 80s because the religious community created this whole air that Blackie was the devil himself? I just find the incongruity almost hilarious.--King V (talk) 04:23, 21 April 2009 (UTC)

Music Career

Just a minor sidebar note here. During Blackie Lawless's time in the Killer Kane band (with Arthur "Killer" Kane of the New York Dolls) they recorded at least three tracks. These were issued (if not before) on a 1982 album entitled "Sons of the Dolls" on the French label, Fan Club. They include the song "Mr Cool" cited in the main article, a song very much in the style of "Love It to Death" era Alice Cooper Band material.

He indeed was apparently billed as 'Blackie Goozeman' at the time. It's possible that this name was derived from Blackie Guzman, a Mexican professional wrestler who achieved some popularity in the US in the 1970s. Otherwise, it would seem to be a remarkable coincidence. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Leapso (talk • contribs) 12:18, 3 September 2008 (UTC)

Citation for Blackie being in the Dolls is literally the same link used in the Dolls article on Wiki. http://www.fromthearchives.com/nyd/chronology.html - Explicitly states that Blackie was brought on to replace Johnny, but he only stuck around for a couple months. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 73.31.218.25 (talk) 16:31, 1 September 2020 (UTC)

Trivia

Moving the random trivia here until someone can put into the prose of the article.

• Baseball player Ryne Duren is his uncle. Before becoming a musician, Lawless played in the minor leagues for the Cincinnati Reds organization. He is a fan of his hometown team, the New York Yankees, but despite his involvement in baseball has stated that Muhammad Ali is his idol.
• Lawless has been friends with fellow Staten Islander and former New York Dolls bandmate David Johansen, as well as with Ace Frehley of KISS and Nikki Sixx of Mötley Crüe, with whom he once worked in the band London.

• As part of the W.A.S.P. stage performance, Lawless mounts a macabre metal sculpture that doubles as a microphone stand (Known by fans and Blackie as 'Elvis'). Reportedly weighing in excess of 1,000 lbs., it is mounted on springs to allow Blackie to climb atop and swing from it during the show to dramatic effect. This mic stand is often cited by the band as the reason for its cancellation of shows, due to its tremendous weight being too heavy for the stage. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 70.119.246.18 (talk) 23:34, 7 April 2009 (UTC)

Instruments

Okay, every time I try to put drums and keyboards under the instruments section on Blackie Lawless's page it gets edited out. Uh.... Why? It says right on W.A.S.P.'s page "has played bass, drums and keyboards on various albums" so it's very annoying that it keeps on getting put out. It even says he can play drums and keyboards on W.A.S.P.'s official website, for God's sake. -Seed 25

Born?

Can somebody tell me why in one area, he was born in Staten Island, NY, and the infobox says he was born in Tampa, FL? Somebody better fix this.--68.174.251.243 (talk) 05:54, 19 March 2010 (UTC)

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