W.A.S.P. - Randy Piper Talks Blackie Lawless, Sister, Chris Holmes, Nikki Sixx, 1982-1984 -Interview 

Love 80's w.a.s.p. They are very under rated band. I wore out the self titled album on tape. Miss the good days of music. Forever a metal head🎸

The WASP debut album line-up was the fkn best. Best look, best songs, greatest videos. Hail WASP!

Man I miss the 80's. What a time like no other.!

These archive interviews are outstanding. Amazing pieces of music history. Thanks for sharing these recordings.

This is a trip ! I worked at my families record stores in the late 70's-early 80's & 1 of the stores was in Cerritos, CA. & Randy knew 1 of the guys that worked there & would stop by and hang out for a while, always really cool too, this was probably 1982-83 and I remember he always had a Budweiser in his hand but always really cool & another cool thing he mentioned the band Xciter, I started playing guitar in 1981 & 1 day I walked in to the store but wasn't working the other guy that worked there that knew all of these musicians was talking to George Lynch & he had just been working at Musonia, the music school owned by the Rhoads family, anyhow, George started giving me guitar lessons in the back of the store & he showed me how to play Paris Is Burnin, an Xciter song & then he had been working with Don but didn't get along with him at the time but said, this was a song that we worked on & it was Breaking The Chains. This was 1981 still. I think the 1st Dokken album came out in 1983. That was pretty cool. A couple other things, Motley Crue did an in store appearance there in 1982 after they got signed by Elektra Records but I personally do have e a copy of their 1st album on Leathür Records and then Great White, who used to play at my high school 2 miles away during lunch time on an open stage, also did an in store appearance at that store when they got signed. Man those were some frickin great times for me. I graduated in 1982 so that was just a perfect time for me to be involved in all of that. I really miss those days🤘

In every place he is asked about a band member and he says "i don't know," he knows damned well. Randy is as sharp as a tack, but also very prudent. He avoids talking trash about the people he has worked with. Even jerks who deserve to be dragged through the mud "cough, Blackie, cough cough."

These interviews are pure gold.

RANDY IS A SUPER COOL GUY .... ONE OF THE NICEST GUYS YOU COULD EVER KNOW

The most awsome line up was Piper, Richards, lawless and Holmes.

Underrated guitar player saw him live!

I was in the band for a while in 1978 and 1979…. With Joey Palermo and then Frank Ferrano… Lizzie Grey rehearsed with us also… I moved into a band called “HERO” after that.

Another great interview. What a blast from the past. Keep up the great work. Not only that, your knowledge of recording and equipment is impressive.

Loved the "Face the Attack" flyer w all the unreleased song titles...

I first heard WASP in 1985 and was blown away. The Last Command will forever be a favorite album

Thank you man….saw you at The Auditorium in WPB FL….. it was my first concert at 14 years old , got steam rolled through the ticket gate being crushed until I almost lost breath lol the girl smashed up against me almost fainted!! Ran up to the front of the stage …..never had to use the ticket lol ! Best show ever!! Still one of the top 5 shows I’ve seen …..Kiss And Wasp…..omg that was cool ….. I’m out there screaming RANDY!!! RANDY !! Jumping up and down freaking out….Randy comes to the edge of the stage and looks down and looks at me gives me the thumbs up…. That hit hard ….. I was like did you see that??? To my buddy Mike …. He was like hell ya!! What did you do ? Kept screaming lmao …… watched the whole show on Randy’s side ….Chris was off the chain jumping around with that Yellow Jackson…..damn good times best show ever.

Ole Blackie . I partied with him at the Rainbow in 87. I drilled him on a lot of stuff. I have to say. He was very accommodating and matter fact about things. I thought he was alright.

Before the flame burns ouuuutttt!!!!!!!

Amazing interview 🤘

I love the old wasp when they were dark and wicked!!!!!

Greatest interviewer ever!!!!!!!

Intro to, The Electric Circus, was epic!

Awesome. 😊

Saw these guys many times, lol. First time with Hellion, Armoured Saint at the Troubadump, lol. A lotta meat thrown.

Your interviews are always so interesting.

I had the Animal F*ck Like A Beast EP, and Metallica's Kill 'Em All record so I was a fan of both. WASP's debut and Ride The Lightning came out 3 weeks apart so when I saw both of them at the record store, I could only afford 1. I opted for the WASP record which I loved then bought RTL a few weeks later.

awesome

I didn't quite refer to W.A.S.P. as glam... they were different more dark and they had good hooks and riffs. Blind in Texas... Animal... I need to go back and remind myself

I'm always learning something new on this channel

Great clip. Now we know for real where W.A.S.P. gets their name!

Yeah Randy sounds like a very good guy I'm going to look out for his solo album 😊😊😊😊

Tony Richards!!! xoxo The Clarences

Hello Nikki, Randy. do you remember me? My name is John and I was in charge of selling WASP merchandise and following the band from city to city I was a "roady". I remember landing in Detroit and then working our way all the way across Canada in the dead of winter to the west coast and then all the way back south threw Washington and Oregon to Cali and LA. I was the one that could get the KILLER HYDROPONIC SKUNK BUD that was so good that Blackie would get pissed off because it effected all of your backup voices!

Self titled debut album is one of my absolute favorites! And LOVE Tony Richards drums. Steve Riley was a pooooor replacement.

Wish he released those old videos

Tony was battling drug addiction the reason he was booted but wasp was at their best in those days .after Chris left the magic left also .

Love WASP

How cool would it be if Randy Piper and Chris Holmes decided to form a band of their own recruiting Tony Richards back on the drums and Johnny rod on the bass and they can call themselves wild widow or tormentellion

The first WASP album with original members was pound for pound at that time, the best of all Hollywood debut albums

Rik I remember and will, man.

This was a nice little interview in regards to waiting for your next one Tommy Skeoch The only cool member to ever be in Tesla. Tommy was the stuff.

They were good in the troubadour days

Fuck yes🤘

They were called Sister twice , So it went Sister, Circus Circus, then Sister again then Wasp.... there were other members he left out. Gary Holland is the other drummer he mentions they were called Sister for the second time when Gary was in the band. Chris had left the band and then came back when Gary had left .

“Or something, I don’t know, whatever, n stuff, ya know?”

The things that went on in bands back then. I wonder if it's like that now.

During the Tony Richards interview he mentions the band mtg. were he was basically fired. Glad that Randy is friends with Tony but it seems alot of the interviews paint Blackie as a bad guy with influence over the other band members and they basically do what he tells them.

W.A.S.P. 3rd row Tulsa 11-6-2022 !!! Can`t wait !!

I thought the Sister guitarist was Randy Shatz? Would love to see some Sister video footage surface so we can find out once and for all who was in the band and who wasn't.

I'm thinking it's They Live Roddy Piper.

I saw an interview with Rik Fox, where he claimed Blackie fired him because he was with a girl Blackie wanted. I don't know if that's true, but it's a story out there

Listening to Chris Holmes in an interview, he says Tony left cuz of drugs and they didn't want him touring strung out...

Confirmed Rik Foxx Came up with the name, I've heard stories on why Tony was fired. I guess Randy didn't want to confirm that if he was still friends with him

I have always wondered what happened to Tony. I guess I'll never know...

Blacky must have been hard to work for from all these band members in wasp and these cool interviews. Anyone know what Blackie is doing now?

And since Blackie Lawless was re-blessed by the priest He said I will no longer sing fuck like a beast

You don’t remember the name of the guitarist in your band?? 😂 in sister?

Randy Shatz was the original guitar player

Get Tony ,Randy ,Johnny Rod to sing and Rick on Bass

Lizzy grey was the other guitarist in sister and london.

This guy didn't shed much light on the Tony Richards situation.

Most the stuff they mentioned they did before the crew did it was done years before by many of them British bands, they all pathed the way for all the others that followed, I,m not hating on anyone, just saying

Why didn’t randy and tony just formed a band after leaving wasp ?

The guitar player in Sister's name is RANDY SCHATZ. Chris Holmes was NEVER in Sister. Neither was Nikki Sixx.

Not sure why's he so obsessed about Chris not being in Sister, lol.

Count the Y'know s

how can you be in a band and not know why members leave.

Is it true Randy auditioned for Alice Cooper & Kane Roberts was chosen over him?

Went to see W.A.S.P. and Armored Saint at the Aragon Brawlroom in Chicago. Metallica ended up on the bill. First I ever heard of them. Great concert. Wouldn't give a penny to see Blackie now. He sold out, and uses religion to disappoint his fans much like Dave Mustaine.

Raw Power (?) I think That was the name of the magazine (small metal rag) first Local read, introduced Me to Sister. I STILL remember the Pictures Were FKN AWESOME 👍😎!! I got It at OZ Records @ Topanga and Dumetz in WOODLAND HILLS, CA. Behind the Counter....a Youngster named "BRIAN". Brian's Last Name? SLAGEL Ring a Bell?? It Should. He's METAL BLADE. Soooooo......LA METAL WAS ACTUALLY BIRTHED And NUTURED South of Ventura Blvd in UPSCALE SUBURBAN WOODLAND HILLS!! Where a Fake ID DIDN'T Work at the Liquor store next door to OZ .....But DID @ Gary's Market across the street! Guy Laughed at Me, looking at ID And said," YOUR Chinese?" I replied, "No, I'm STONED" He Paused...... Shook His Head....paused Again.....Sold Me the BEER, And said "Have Fun at the Beach,..... DON'T EVER TRY THAT AGAIN. Bye* True Metal Nostalgic Story.

He forgot to mention Joey Palermo was the bassist for Wasp for a short period of time but he was shot and killed in a drug deal gone wrong

Get together with JAKE E LEE??? THE MUSICIANSHIP IS OFF THE CHARTS!!

99% of the world knows W.A.S.P. to stand for - White Anglo Saxon Protestant. I would find it hard to believe anyone in the actual band would not know this. It is not racist, it's a description. There would be no need to not own it, especially if this is a 20 year old tape. We didnt have the "woke" disease to distort it, back then.

WASP is a killer name for a band... But I remember kids in the 1980s made up these crazy stories... Because they used the pentagram for a second, so... they're evil and bad... thus racist, too... And I remember my dopey friend saying... Dude, White Anglo Saxon Protestant... That's what WASP means... These guys hate me, dude... Because my nerd friend was Jewish. Even at 10 I remember thinking... Calm down... I just don't think that's what they're saying and even if they are, so what... it's a rock band... who cares.... every band just wants to seem badass and hardcore... My friend seemed to relax. So that was good.

Tony Richards was a junkie apparently.

I think blackie and Chris butt heads so much 'cause Chris is taller. Yes, I think Blackie is that pretentious.