Stephen Pearcy, the iconic lead vocalist of Ratt, recently discussed the upcoming release of The Atlantic Years Limited Edition Box Set in an interview with BraveWords. In the conversation, he delved into his friendship with the legendary guitar virtuoso Eddie Van Halen.
Here’s a notable excerpt from their chat:
BraveWords: Can you recall a particular band that inspired you to strive for greatness?
Pearcy: “Ooh. I highly doubt anyone could surpass their brilliance. Picture yourself at the Whiskey Stage, watching Van Halen perform. I was fortunate enough to be there with Ed, thinking, ‘Damn, this is a whole new world!’ I returned to San Diego and insisted everyone must see this band. It took me some time to attend their show because a friend of mine persistently urged me, saying, ‘You’ve got to see this band, they’re like Zeppelin.’ But let me tell you, Zeppelin… I had the privilege of experiencing their magic three times. It was mind-blowing. So there I was, witnessing Van Halen right from the start, and then I got to witness the mighty Led Zeppelin, and I thought, ‘Okay, you’ve got a challenging path ahead.’ Nevertheless, you aim high. I mean, I adored Aerosmith—their earlier work is astounding. Blue Oyster Cult, Priest… I remember Robbin (Crosby) introduced me to Priest in ’78 or ’79, and I went nuts, thinking, ‘Who the heck are these guys?'”
BraveWords: What did Eddie think of Ratt?
Pearcy: “You know, I used to pester him all the time, saying, ‘Let my band perform with you!’ But he never agreed. However, we finally did it. Ratt opened for Van Halen at a festival a few years before his passing. Thank goodness we had that opportunity. I constantly pushed him, saying, ‘Let my band open for you! I see you all the time. Forget this, let’s play! Come on, man!’ But yeah, we actually got to share the stage with the mighty Van Halen, and it was truly amazing.”
BraveWords: There was the Monsters Of Rock tour where Van Halen (with Sammy Hagar) headlined over Scorpions, Metallica, and Kingdom Come. However, it wasn’t Ratt on that tour; it was Dokken. What were your thoughts when Van Halen selected Dokken for the Monsters bill?
Pearcy: “There was a method to their madness. Before Sammy, Dave (David Lee Roth) was truly running the show, so it’s intriguing. I’m not sure, maybe they didn’t want any bands to pose as competition? But there was no competition. Ratt wasn’t in competition with anyone. We didn’t view Mötley or any of those bands like Armored Saint or W.A.S.P. as rivals. We’re still friends to this day; there was no rivalry. Well, anyway, hmm.”
8 comments
I needed a good laugh, Stephen Pearcy. Love you guys, but no Van Halen was not worried about you.
Funny that’s just as worse as Dee Snider with Twisted Sister saying Iron Maiden was scared of us !! Hysterical.
Yeppers…….my thoughts exactly……hell, Warren DeMartini owes half his links and tone to trying to rip off Ed….but, Lynch too…..Pearcy wasn’t exactly ” the best frontman” , but Dokken did suck Live when I saw them with priest in 87′ …..anyway….hmmmmm lol( and I mean Don Dokken already had his work cut out going against Halford, but that was one of the worst vocal performances I’ve ever seen live……no doubt!
Ratt was not considered for the tour because Ratt sucked…
RATT in the prime were (in my mind) were more talented and better than most 80s Classic Music. End of story.
😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂… Please tell us another joke
That is true. They were very decent musicians and produced some thoughtful melodic stuff. IMO, beyond some of their contemporaries .
I loved Ratt, but they were not as big as Doklen. After Dream Warriors they were pretty huge.