Quiet Riot

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For other uses, see Quiet Riot (disambiguation).
Quiet Riot

Quiet Riot was an American heavy metal band. They are best known for their hit singles "Cum On Feel the Noize" and "Bang Your Head (Metal Health)." They were founded in 1973 by guitarist Randy Rhoads and bassist Kelly Garni, under the original name Mach 1, before changing the name to Little Women and finally Quiet Riot. The original line-up featured lead vocalist Kevin DuBrow, Rhoads, Garni, and drummer Drew Forsyth.

In a radio interview given by the band in 1979, DuBrow said the band's name was born of a conversation with Rick Parfitt of British band Status Quo in which Parfitt said he'd like to name a band "Quite Right".[1] With his thick English accent, it sounded like he was saying "Quiet Riot". They are ranked at number 100 on VH1's "100 Greatest Artists of Hard Rock."

Kevin DuBrow, lead singer of the band for the majority of its existence, was found dead in his Las Vegas, Nevada home at approximately 5:20 p.m. on Sunday, November 25, 2007. The cause of death was ruled a cocaine overdose.[2] Quiet Riot officially disbanded after his death.

History

Early years

One of the more successful hard rock acts in Los Angeles in the late 1970s, Quiet Riot was nonetheless unable to procure a US recording contract. By 1977 they were able to secure a deal with Sony, but their records would be released only in Japan. The original four members recorded their debut album Quiet Riot, or QR I, in 1977. The second album Quiet Riot II, or QR II, was recorded at The Record Plant and released in Japan in 1978. Once recording was completed, bassist Kelly Garni left the band. Although Garni's replacement Rudy Sarzo was pictured and credited on 'QR II', he did not join before its recording.[2] In 1979, Rhoads auditioned for Ozzy Osbourne's new band after the editors of a small, Los Angeles based magazine, Raw Power asked Dana Strum to contact Randy to see if he would be interested. Osbourne reportedly hired Rhoads immediately. DuBrow and Forsyth tried to keep the band together following Rhoads' departure, with the addition of guitarist Greg Leon[3][4] and former Suite 19 bassist Gary Van Dyke[5]. During this period of 1980-1982, the band changed it's name to DuBrow and played shows with former Gamma drummer Skip Gillette.

Following Rhoads' death in a plane crash on March 19, 1982, DuBrow attempted to reform Quiet Riot. None of the other original members were interested. Carlos Cavazo, whom DuBrow had previously played with in a band called Snow, joined as lead guitarist. Sarzo re-joined the band on bass, and Rudy's friend, drummer Frankie Banali, completed the lineup.

In September 1982, with a little help from producer Spencer Proffer, they were signed to CBS Records in America. On March 11, 1983, their American debut album Metal Health was released. Their two previous albums, QR I and QR II, have still not been released in North America, despite the band's subsequent success.

Success with "Cum On Feel the Noize"

On August 27, 1983, Quiet Riot's second single "Cum On Feel the Noize" was released. Their cover of the 1973 Slade hit spent two weeks at #5 on the Billboard chart in November 1983. It was the first heavy metal song to make the Top 5 on Billboard's Hot 100 singles chart (a.k.a.Pop Chart). The success of the single helped carry "Metal Health" to the top of Billboard pop album charts, making it the first American heavy metal debut album to ever reach #1 in the USA. It was #1 on November 26, 1983, making Quiet Riot the first heavy metal band to have a top 5 hit & #1 album the same week. Their success was aided in no small part to the "Cum On Feel the Noize" video's heavy rotation on MTV.

In 1983, a #1 album and a top 5 single was unheard of for a heavy metal band. The album also displaced The Police's hugely successful Synchronicity album from #1. Metal Health paved the way for a new, stronger commercial viability for heavy metal. The album stayed at #1 for just a week until Lionel Richie's Can't Slow Down took over the #1 spot for three weeks before being surpassed by Michael Jackson's Thriller, which returned to the top after a long hiatus. Metal Health's title song, which was released as a single on March 11, 1983, finally charted in early 1984 and peaked at #31. This could be attributed to the song's appearance in the 1984 movie Footloose, as well as another heavy rotation video on MTV. It was Number 41 on the VH1's Top 100 Greatest Hard Rock Songs. The Metal Health album would ultimately sell over 6 million copies in the U.S.

In support of Metal Health, Quiet Riot toured North America as the opening act for Black Sabbath on their Born Again tour from October 1983 through March 1984.

Later years

The group's follow-up, Condition Critical, was released on July 7, 1984. Though successful, it was a relative disappointment, critically and commercially, selling only 3 million units. This release included yet another Slade cover, the single, "Mama Weer All Crazee Now", and numerous musical and lyrical nods to Slade[citation needed], whose influence on Quiet Riot dates back to the early 1970s, when DuBrow photographed Slade during their first Los Angeles appearances at the Whisky a Go Go[citation needed]. Reportedly frustrated over the sophomore release's failure to duplicate the success of its predecessor, DuBrow outspokenly began expressing his opinion in the heavy metal press that many bands on the L.A. metal scene owed their success to what he saw as the doors opened for them by Quiet Riot. He went as far as comparing his band to The Beatles. DuBrow's verbal assaults angered many of Quiet Riot's musical contemporaries, and alienated fans.

DuBrow's tirades led to fan backlash and clashes in the media with several other Los Angeles based metal bands, resulting in Sarzo quitting the group in 1985, to be replaced by Chuck Wright (formerly of Giuffria). The group also temporarily added a keyboardist, John Purdell, for their 1985 tour. Purdell appeared on their next release, QRIII, in 1986, another commercial disappointment. Fed up with DuBrow's antics, the rest of Quiet Riot fired him from his own band in early 1987 and replaced him with former Rough Cutt vocalist Paul Shortino. Wright was also fired and was replaced by Sean McNabb. The band released Quiet Riot in 1988, which failed to return the band to its commercial glory. This 1988 album technically has the same name as their debut album with Randy Rhoads. After a tour that ended in Hawaii in 1989, the band members went their separate ways. DuBrow subsequently fought in court to keep control of the band's name.

Having won the rights to the band's name, DuBrow teamed up with English born blues guitarist Sean Manning, bassist Kenny Hillary, and drummer Pat Ashby to reform Quiet Riot. Initially using the moniker Little Women (the name Rhoads and DuBrow were using in the 1970s before settling on Quiet Riot), to avoid any adverse publicity, Dubrow and Manning compiled songs for a new album, later to be released as Quiet Riot's 'Terrified'. The band played venues throughout the USA until 1990 when Manning left to join the band Hurricane.

As the nineties began, tempers had cooled between the former bandmates Cavazo and Dubrow and they started to communicate again, eventually forming the band Heat with bassist Kenny Hillery and drummer Bobby Rondinelli. Eventually they reverted back to the Quiet Riot name and released Terrified in 1993 with Banali rejoining on drums. Quiet Riot, with Chuck Wright again on bass, hit the road in 1994 in support of 'Terrified' with Wisconsin's Slam I Am.

That same year, DuBrow released The Randy Rhoads Years, a compilation featuring tracks from Quiet Riot's two Japan-only releases along with previously unreleased material, many of which featured newly recorded vocals. Hillery, who'd left the group in 1994, committed suicide on June 5, 1996. The band released Down to the Bone in 1995 and a "Greatest Hits" album in 1996, which included nothing from the original two Rhoads albums and nothing from the two 90's albums. It did, however, include a few tracks from the 1988 Shortino album. After that, Rudy Sarzo joined up again in 1997, and the band continued touring.

The 1997 tour was a disaster, as the band was arrested several times. One angry fan sued DuBrow for injuries sustained during a show[citation needed]. The group still managed to release Alive and Well in (1999) which featured new songs and several re-recorded hits. They followed this up with Guilty Pleasures in 2001.

In late 2002, the band teamed up with director Jack Edward Sawyers to shoot a concert video. Quiet Riot Live In The 21st Century was shot on September 26, 2002, at the Key Club in Los Angeles and was released November 11, 2003.

DuBrow performing.

Quiet Riot officially broke up in February 2003 but reunited in 2005. That line-up included DuBrow, Banali, Wright, and new guitarist Alex Grossi. The band was featured on the 2005 Rock Never Stops Tour tour in 2005 along with Cinderella, Ratt, and FireHouse.

In early 2006 Chuck Wright and Alex Grossi left the band and former L.A. Guns guitarist Tracii Guns joined, only to leave two weeks later due to "musical differences" with DuBrow. Other members of Quiet Riot have included guitarists Billy Morris and Neil Citron, and bassists Tony Franklin, Sean McNabb and Wayne Carver.

Quiet Riot released Rehab on October 3, 2006 with a lineup of DuBrow, Banali, Franklin, and Neil Citron. Former Deep Purple bassist and singer Glenn Hughes made a guest vocal appearance on the album.

DuBrow's death

On November 25, 2007, The Vegas Eye website reported that Kevin DuBrow had been found dead in his apartment earlier that day. Banali confirmed the death in an email to Spain's The Metal Circus.[6] Banali wrote:

"Please respect my privacy as I mourn the passing and honor the memory of my dearest friend Kevin DuBrow."

On December 10, 2007, media reports confirmed that Dubrow was pronounced dead on the afternoon of November 25, 2007, and was later determined to have died of a cocaine overdose approximately six days earlier.

On January 14, 2008, drummer Frankie Banali issued the following statement via his website regarding the future of Quiet Riot.

"I have been approached to see if I would be interested in contacting Rudy Sarzo and Carlos Cavazo and to audition singers for Quiet Riot. I have also been approached to see if I would be interested in contacting and reforming the version of Quiet Riot that included Paul Shortino, Carlos Cavazo and Sean McNabb. Let me make this very simple and perfectly clear. While I am still actively involved in the business interests of Quiet Riot and will continue in that capacity, I reject any and all suggestions to have Quiet Riot continue as a live performing entity. My friendship, love and respect for Kevin DuBrow as well as my personal love and affection for Kevin's mother and his family makes it inconceivable for me to ever entertain any ovation to reform or to continue Quiet Riot. Kevin was too important to go on without him. It would also be a disrespect to the fans who have supported Quiet Riot for nearly 25 years. I thank everyone for the wonderful and sometimes unpredictable adventure that I was able to share as a member of Quiet Riot. The only regret that I have is the loss of Kevin. May he rest in peace. I now begin life after Quiet Riot." [7]

Pop culture

  • In 2008 movie, The Wrestler, the song "Metal Health" was used in the movie's opening sequence and also as Randy "The Ram" Robinson's entrance theme.
  • In 2008, the song "Cum On Feel the Noize" was played in the opening scenes of the movie "Tropic Thunder" during the movie preview parody scenes.
  • In 2007, Quiet Riot were featured in radio promos for ESPN Radio, parodying their status as dated rock and roll icons. Dubrow mentions that they are not completely dated, since they're still touring, to which Banali replies "Yeah...in your minivan."
  • Quiet Riot are mentioned in Ben Folds' song "Rockin' the Suburbs" in 2001, in the lines "I'm rockin' the suburbs, just like Quiet Riot did. I'm rockin' the suburbs, except that they were talented"
  • In the 2005 episode of The Simpsons entitled "The Father, The Son, and The Holy Guest Star", the band is depicted as converted to a religious band called Pious Riot and plays a parody of the song "Cum On Feel the Noize" as "Come on Feel the Lord". When Bart calls them "a crappy rock band from the 1940s," Kevin DuBrow responds, "We've played more state fairs than The Beatles."
  • Quiet Riot's track "Bang Your Head (Metal Health)" is used as the title theme to the video game Showdown: Legends of Wrestling. The same song also appears in the soundtrack to Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories, while their version for Slade's "Cum On Feel the Noize" is featured in Grand Theft Auto: Vice City, both playing on Rock radio station V-Rock. "Bang Your Head (Metal Health)" was also used in the Crank soundtrack, as the song played during the film's opening sequence. It was also used in a scene for the film Footloose. The song "Bang Your Head (Metal Health)" is a playable song in the game Guitar Hero: Rocks the 80s.
  • On the Weezer track "Heart Songs" from their self-titled "Red Album", lead singer Rivers Cuomo sings "Quiet Riot got me started with the banging of my head", as part of a list of Heavy metal bands who have inspired him, alongside Iron Maiden, Judas Priest and Slayer, before listing more 80's pop artists, and finally Nirvana.
  • In the 2005 album "Punk Goes 80's", Relient K covered The Bangles' song "Manic Monday" and changed two original lines to read "He says to me in his Quiet Riot voice: "C'mon feel the noise".
  • Professional Wrestler Necro Butcher uses "Metal Health" as his entrance theme in Wrecking Ball Wrestling.

Band members

Main article: List of Quiet Riot band members

Discography

Studio Albums

Year Album Details Peak Chart Positions Certifications
US AUS CAN NZ SWI UK
1977 Quiet Riot (Japan only)
  • 1st studio album
  • Released: March 2, 1977
 - - - - - -
1978 Quiet Riot II (Japan only)
  • 2nd studio album
  • Released: April 24, 1978
 - - - - - -
1983 Metal Health
  • 3rd studio album
  • Released: March 11, 1983
 1 1 1 1 2 1 6× Platinum
1984 Condition Critical
  • 4th studio album
  • Released: July 27, 1984
 15 2 3 5 2 4 Platinum
1986 Quiet Riot III
  • 5th studio album
  • Released: September 8, 1986
 32 — 2 5 4 —
1988 Quiet Riot
  • 6th studio album
  • Released: October 21, 1988
 112 — 10 15 — 34
1993 Terrified
  • 7th studio album
  • Released: July 19, 1993
 - — 11 — 27 —
1995 Down to the Bone
  • 8th studio album
  • Released: March 1, 1995
 - 20 8 24 19 —
1999 Alive and Well
  • 9th studio album
  • Released: March 23, 1999
 - 9 9 7 6 8
2001 Guilty Pleasures
  • 10th studio album
  • Released: May 29, 2001
 - — 18 28 — 40
2006 Rehab
  • 11th studio album
  • Released: October 3, 2006
 - — — 61 — —

Compilations

Singles

Videography

Videos

Music videos

References

  1. ^ http://www.dailypilot.com/articles/2008/03/19/features/dpt-dubrow03122008.txt
  2. ^ ""Quiet Riot singer died of overdose"". AP via Yahoo News. 12/10/2007. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  3. ^ Metal Archives
  4. ^ Tartarean Desire
  5. ^ Sleazeroxx
  6. ^ Confirmado por Frankie Banali en un e-mail a Sergi Ramos
  7. ^ [1] "Frankie Banali statemen" 21 January 2008

External links

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