Ratt Bassist Robbie Crane Quits‎

Ratt bass player Robbie Crane has announced his departure from the band after 15 years.
In a statement on his Facebook page, Crane wrote, "Hey all, Just thought I would let you know that as of a week ago I have decided to quit RATT… For me, it is just time to move on," while in his official press release he thanked "all of the Ratt fans who have been so supportive through my tenure. It has been a pleasure!"

Other side projects Crane has been involved in included: Vince Neil, Adler's Appetite, and Lynch Mob.

Steel Panther have announced a new full UK tour for November 2012.

Those Dirty balled cock-rockers, Steel Panther have announced a new full UK tour for November 2012.

The hair metal band, who have been busy supporting Motley Crue and Def Leppard on their joint UK arena tour, as well as playing a select few headline dates over the last month will return to the UK in November for a full-scale nationwide tour.

The tour, which will follow Steel Panther's Main Stage performance at this year's Download Festival, will begin at Nottingham's Rock City on November 5th and run until November 15th, when the band headline London's Hammersmith Apollo. These gigs will be the band's largest UK headline shows to date.

Steel Panther will be touring in support of their third studio album 'Balls Out', which they released in October last year.

Steel Panther November 2012 UK Tour Dates are as follows:

Nov 5th - Rock City, Nottingham
Nov 6th - Wolverhampton Civic Hall
Nov 7th - O2 Academy Newcastle
Nov 9th - Edinburgh Corn Exchange
Nov 10th - O2 Apollo Manchester
Nov 11th - Norwich UEA
Nov 13th - O2 Academy Bristol
Nov 14th - Southampton Guildhall
Nov 15th - HMV Hammersmith Apollo

Music Video Babes: Tawny Kitaen

Julie "Tawny" Kitaen was born in San Diego , California in August 1961 to a Jewish-American father, Terry Kitaen, who was an employee of a neon sign company, and Linda Taylor Kitaen, a housewife and a former beauty pageant queen. She became famous in the 1980s for appearing in several hard rock videos, first for Ratt's "Back for More" as the girl in the 1950s-style skirt at the jukebox and a couple of years later in several videos for for the band Whitesnake, including the hit "Here I Go Again". Kitaen was married to Whitesnake lead singer David Coverdale from 1989–1991. She had recurring parts on multiple television series such as Hercules: The Legendary Journeys and co-hosted America's Funniest People from 1992–1994. She was arrested for drug possession in 2006,has been in and out of rehab programs, was part of The Surreal Life cast in 2006, and was one of the patients in Season 2 of Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew.

Kitaen was romantically linked at various times to Robbin Crosby of Ratt, Tommy Lee of Motley Crue , O.J. Simpson, Jerry Seinfeld, Bob Saget, and Jon Stewart. Kitaen married Deep Purple and Whitesnake singer David Coverdale in 1989, but the two divorced in 1991. After her marriage to Coverdale ended, she married baseball pitcher Chuck Finley in 1997. They had two daughters, Wynter Finley in 1993 and Raine Finley in 1998. Kitaen appeared in a feature of professional athletes and their wives in the 1999 Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue.

Tawny in Perils of Gwendoline

Kitaen began her acting career in 1983 with a minor role in the television movie, Malibu. In 1984, she starred as the title character of the erotic-adventure movie The Perils of Gwendoline in the Land of the Yik-Yak (a.k.a. Gwendoline). She also co-starred in the movie Bachelor Party as the bride-to-be of a young Tom Hanks and was the star of the 1986 horror movie Witchboard. She also starred in the not so well known film "Crystal Heart" in 1986.
Kitaen became associated with the glam metal scene because of her high school sweetheart, Ratt guitarist and founder Robbin Crosby. Her legs appeared on the cover of Ratt's self-titled EP wearing black stockings and red pumps, pictured with white mice climbing up her legs. Then, in ripped-up clothes, she appeared on the cover of Ratt's Out of the Cellar. She also can be seen at the beginning of the Ratt video "Back for More" as the girl in the 1950s-style skirt at the jukebox.

In 1987, her boyfriend was David Coverdale, the lead singer of Whitesnake, and she appeared in several of the band's music videos, the most famous of which was for the song "Here I Go Again", in which she did the splits and rolled around on the hood of two Jaguars while wearing a white negligee. She also appeared in the videos for "Is This Love" and "Still of the Night". In 1989, she appeared in the video for "The Deeper the Love" and "Fool For Your Loving".



After her music-video appearances, Kitaen took on a number of television roles. She was co-host of America's Funniest People with Dave Coulier from 1992-4, and was a regular cast member on The New WKRP in Cincinnati from 1991-3. She guest-starred in the episode The Nose Job of the sitcom Seinfeld in 1991 and in Season 9 Episode 1 of Married... with Children called 'Shoeway to Heaven' in 1994. She had a recurring role as Deianira in three of the Hercules: The Legendary Journeys television movies in 1994, and then in the regular television series. From 1992-6, she provided the voice of "Annabelle" in the animated television show Eek! The Cat.
Kitaen was one of the cast of the sixth edition of the VH1 reality television show, The Surreal Life, which began airing in March 2006. In addition, in late 2007, she appeared on Rock of Love Season 1[citation needed]. Kitaen also appeared in the second season of the VH1 reality TV show Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew, which began in October 2008. Dr. Drew Pinsky voiced concern for her use of triazolam after she admitted to using more than 0.5 mg per use. Pinsky guaranteed her that taking the drug (as with any benzodiazepine) in such high doses will eventually cause her to have a seizure. (Questionable previous sentence since benzodiazepines actually suppress seizures). For fear of her life, Pinsky cut the dosage in half, despite Kitaen's protests.

Former music video babe striking more MILfy pose

R.I.PJani Lane

One of the biggest names and icons of the Hair Metal -scene, Jani Lane, ex-singer of Warrant, was found dead at a Comfort Inn hotel in Woodland Hills, California. He was 47 years old. Lane is survived by his estranged wife, Kimberly; a brother, Eric; three sisters, Marcine Williams, Michelle Robinson and Victoria Oswald-Ley; a daughter from his first marriage, Taylar Lane; a daughter from his second marriage, Madison Lane; and two stepdaughters, Ryan and Brittany

Jani Lane was as John Kennedy Oswald, February 1, 1964.

Song of the Week: Cinderella - Shake Me

"Shake Me" was the debut single by the glam-blues band Cinderella. It was the subject of a music video which played upon the band's name, thus depicting a hot babe, who, Cinderella-like, is unable to go to a Cinderella show, while what one must suppose to be her elder sisters can. Somehow a poster on the wall allows her to teleport to the concert so that she may enjoy the band's performance and join them afterwards.



Though not a hit itself, "Shake Me" was the song that set the stage for the band's big breakthrough. The following single, "Nobody's Fool", went to #13 in the US, and their debut album Night Songs peaked as high as #3, going triple platinum. It was hugely popular for quite some time.

MICHAEL MONROE To Release SENSORY OVERDRIVE August 23RD in US

Michael Monroe, who recently joided the stage with another hard rock legend Thin Lizzy at the High Voltage festival in London, will be releasing his album Sensory Overdrive in USA too, on August 23rd. on Spinefarm/Universal.

The new album from the Hanoi Rocks singer was produced by Jack Douglas ( Aerosmith, Cheap Trick etc) and features guest performance from Motorhead front man Lemmy among the others. The first single and video from Sensory Overdrive is the track “78”. The video will have its world premiere on AOL on August 1st.

In support of the cd, Michael will head out September 30th on a 16 date U.S and Canadian tour with his all star band featuring guitarists Steve Conte (New York Dolls) and Dregen (Hellacopters, Backyard Babies), bassist Sami Yaffa (Hanoi Rocks, New York Dolls, Joan Jett and the Blackhearts), and drummer Karl Rockfist (Danzig).

Vinni Vincent arrested On Assault Charges

According to TMZ.com, former KISS guitarist Vinnie Vincent was arrested today on charges of aggravated assault. Vincent (real name Vinnie Cusano) was busted by the Rutherford County Sheriff's Department in Tennessee and held on $10,000 bond. He posted bail and was released

Vincent replaced Ace Frehley as the lead guitarist for KISS in 1982 and performed with the band on two studio albums, 1982's, "Creatures Of The Night" and 1983's, "Lick It Up," before quitting in April 1984.

Kiss following the Lick It Up tour, Vincent formed Vinnie Vincent Invasion (also known as VVI), and released two LPs: Vinnie Vincent Invasion (1986) and All Systems Go (1988).

As a solo artist, he has released an EP (Euphoria, 1996, with Robert Fleischman)with Vinnie on bass, vocals and drums. Vinnie also released a collector's CD in 2001 entitled Speedball Jamm which consisted of his own private recordings of the VINNIE VINCENT INVASION jamm sessions recorded during rehearsals in 1986 which included moments of just Vinnie soloing alone. Due to the rarity of the these recordings, Speedball Jamm has now become a high priced collector's item selling in the vicinity of 100.00 on ebay. In 1990 Vinnie Vincent was to release an album entitled "Guitars From Hell" but due to business complications "Guitars From Hell" was never released. To this day, Vincent's inferior sounding bootleg demo tracks from "Guitars From Hell" remain one of the most coveted bootlegs among Vinnie Vincent collectors. It is rumored that the master recordings of "Guitars From Hell" may be available, however it remains unconfirmed. Vincent was also to release a solo album called "Guitarmaggedon" in 1997-1998 which is unconfirmed as to its release date.

Classic Albums: Dokken - Tooth and Nail

Tooth and Nail was the second studio album by Dokken, released in 1984 through Elektra Records. It was the #35 album of 1985 according to Billboard magazine. The album was certified Platinum by the RIAA and reached #49 on the Billboard 200 U.S. album chart.

This album was the group's first with bassist Jeff Pilson following Juan Croucier's departure to join Ratt. Associate producer was Roy Thomas Baker, who had produced successful albums for Queen and The Cars and had re-recorded, remixed and re-mastered Mötley Crüe's Too Fast for Love after the album was picked up by Elektra/WEA. It was produced by Tom Werman, known for producing several successful albums for Cheap Trick and the previous year's Shout at the Devil, the Crüe's breakthrough album.

Lead-off single for the album was "Into the Fire". A music video for the song received moderate play on MTV. "Into the Fire" spent eight weeks in the Top 40 of Billboard's Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks chart from October to December 1984, peaking at #21 and charting for a total of eleven weeks.



Second single, "Just Got Lucky", was somewhat less successful, again supported by a music video while charting on the 50-place Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks chart for seven weeks during January and February 1985 and peaking at #27.

It would be a power ballad that would give the album—and the band—its biggest hit. "Alone Again" spent fourteen weeks on the Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks chart, including two at its peak position of #20. More significantly, the melodic song of heartbreak was aided by strong rotation that spring and summer at MTV and gave the band their first and biggest hit on the Hot 100, where its eleven-week run from May to July 1985 peaked at #64.


Though clearly more an album act than a singles act, Dokken's album sales were tied to the videos for the singles from those albums. Tooth and Nail rose to #71 on The Billboard 200 during the release of "Into the Fire", but fell off the charts for a week before re-entering and rising to #77 during the release of "Just Got Lucky". It was during the run of this single that the album, sliding down the charts after "Just Got Lucky" faded, reversed course and hit its peak of #49. This time, Tooth and Nail would be certified Gold by the RIAA (in August 1985)—the band's first certification—and would linger on the charts for the remainder of the year, aided by a gig opening for the Scorpions. This continued buoying of sales resulted in the unusual circumstance of the album being rated higher on the 1985 year-end charts (#35) than it had actually reached in its chart peak.

The album's three music videos were later featured along with the band's other videos to date on a longform videocassette release, Dokken Unchain the Night, by Elektra/Asylum Records through Elektra Entertainment. That video debuted on Billboard's Top Music Video—Longform chart at #11 in January 1987, peaking at #5 that May. The video collection was certified Gold in April 1987, and Platinum the following April. In 2007 the collection was re-released in the DVD format by Rhino Home Video through Warner Music Vision, debuting on the Billboard Comprehensive Music Videos chart at #27.

The song "Into The Fire" was featured in the 1987 film "A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors", along with their newly-written title track. The song can be heard in some versions of the film when Kristen is listening to the radio in her bedroom.

In March 1989, on the strength of continued sales, Tooth and Nail—the band's first Gold album—was its third to be certified Platinum by the RIAA for sales of 1 million in the U.S. alone.

Stampede announce further live UK dates and release promo video for 'Send Me Down An Angel'

May 9 saw the release of 'A Sudden Impulse', the new studio album from British melodic rockers Stampede, and with it their third promo video for the opening track 'Send Me Down An Angel'.



The band, which comprises of founding members Reuben & Laurence Archer and Colin Bond (along with new additions Chris Clowsley, Rob Wolverson and Stevie G), are delighted with the response they have had to the new material and are excited to be able to announce more dates to their UK schedule, which include a headline slot on the Devil Stage at Devon Rox Festival in August, a Midlands date with Californian hard rock legends Y&T and an appearance at Hard Rock Hell V in December.

Reuben comments: "We're totally blown away with all the great feedback and support we've had from fans and industry so far, it's an incredible feeling to realise people still want to hear the kind of music we love, write and play, which after all these years still appears to be relevant. We're already getting stuck in to writing for another album, but of course there's nothing like playing live, so we're really looking forward to our forthcoming dates and pleased to be able to say there are more in the pipeline to be announced very soon!"

Stampede will play:

· The Sir Robert Peel, Kingston-Upon-Thames - Saturday 14th May 2011

· Devon Rox Festival, Powderham Castle, Exeter - Saturday 6th August 2011

· The Slade Rooms, Wolverhampton - Tuesday 11th October 2011

· Hard Rock Hell V, Prestatyn, Wales - Saturday 3rd December 2011

Music Video Babes: Bobbie Brown

Bobbie Brown, aka Bobbie Brown-Lane, was born as (don't hold your breath, there's nothing interesting here) Bobbie Jean Brown on October 7, 1969 in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, U.S. This blonde sex bomb is an American actress, model, and former beauty pageant contestant. But she is, and will always best known for her appearance in the video for Warrant's glam metal anthem "Cherry Pie."

Bobbie attended Starkey Academy in the town of Central, Louisiana during High School and won the Miss Louisiana Teen USA 1987 title and represented Louisiana in the Miss Teen USA 1987 pageant broadcast live from El Paso, Texas in July 1987. She made the top ten in ninth place with an average score of 8.350 after the preliminary competition, placed sixth in interview (8.712), fourth in swimsuit (8.908) and sixth in swimsuit (8.754). Her average combined score of 8.791 for the final competitions was just enough to put her in the top five in fifth place, where she excelled in the final question and eventually placed second runner-up.

Brown won the spokesperson competition on Star Search a record thirteen times and has also starred in TV shows such as Married... with Children (she appeared in 3 episodes) and films such as Last Action Hero (1993). In 1998, she sued Penthouse for featuring a model also named Bobbie Brown.

Brown worked as a model for Budweiser and other companies. She also appeared in music videos, including Great White's "Once Bitten Twice Shy," "House of Broken Love," and "Lady Red Light," and Hurricane's "I'm On To You."

She is best remembered as the girl in Warrant's sexually suggestive "Cherry Pie" video released in 1990, which received heavy airplay on MTV and other music video stations. Canadian cable-TV music network, MuchMusic refused to air the "Cherry Pie" video on the grounds that it was "offensively sexist".

During the shooting of Warrant's "Cherry Pie" video, Brown met lead singer Jani Lane. She eventually left her boyfriend Matthew Nelson for him, and they wed a couple of months later in July 1991. They were married for three years and had a daughter, Taylar Jayne Lane, before divorcing in 1993.

Brown has also dated Mark McGrath of Sugar Ray, Jay Gordon from Orgy, Stevie Rachelle from Tuff and Mötley Crüe drummer Tommy Lee.

She is currently working on writing a book soon to be out called Serial Rock Dater: Sex, Drugs, and Cherry Pie