Originally published in Rave-Up #13 (1988)
Interview by Devorah Ostrov |
Jetboy got all dressed up for this publicity photo!
L-R: Fernie Rod, Ron Tostenson, Mickey Finn, Sami Yaffa & Billy Rowe
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Sami Yaffa and Billy Rowe (with his arm still in a cast)
Photo: Devorah Ostrov
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Billy: There were a lot of reasons... It was political bullshit. It's actual political bullshit within the label. It's really weird. Everyone at the label loved the record. They gave us extra money to record it. It had a release date. The records and CDs are printed up. Everything was ready to go, and the head of the label pulled the plug!
He doesn't really give a shit about any of the rock bands on his label. He wants to steer the label towards Top 40. Whatever, we're happy to be out of there. It's for the best. Both MCA and Chrysalis are real interested in signing us. We just can't stand the waiting. I know one thing, this band has gone through more shit than any other band.
Q: I know! For every good thing that happens to you guys, something bad happens.
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Jetboy "Taxis for Takeoff" on the
cover of Music Connection |
Q: You went to Florida to record the LP [which will be called Feel the Shake]. Why there instead of locally?
Sami: That was because our producer [Tom Allom] knew the studio really well. That's where he's from and where he's worked.
Q: Was recording the LP harder than you thought it would be?
Billy: Easier!
Sami: You know, I have major experience in recording, but this was a piece of cake. It was so easy.
Q: Easier than with Hanoi Rocks?
Sami: Yeah! Everything just went so smoothly. There were no major arguments, no fights, no problems. We never worked for more than 10 hours a day. With Hanoi, we fucking stayed in the studio for 20 hours, weeks and weeks... And in the end, we'd still be yelling, "I want this to be there!"
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| Sami Yaffa Photo: Devorah Ostrov |
Sami: It's a really tragic thing.
Q: Did Todd get heavily into drugs after Jetboy moved to Los Angeles? He didn't seem that bad when you lived in San Francisco.
Billy: He was like that here, but people just didn't know. We hid it because we were so embarrassed about it.
Q: Then why did you wait so long to replace him?
Billy: I don't know. I guess because we tried to help him for so long. But we finally figured that even if it set us back, we had to replace him. He just couldn't handle it. He wasn't holding his part up.
Q: Did you see much of Todd after he left the band?
Billy: Yeah, we'd all hang out together. There were no real hard feelings. He knew what he did; he fucked up. What happened was too bad, but it was his own fault. We gave him plenty of chances.
Q: Sami, how did you hear that Jetboy was looking for a new bass player?
Sami: They fucking called me up! It's a weird story. I went to London to see if I wanted to work with Nasty [Suicide] and Andy [McCoy, both ex-Hanoi Rocks]. And I thought, "Nah, not really." When I finally got back home, there was a message from my girlfriend saying there was this band in LA who's trying to get ahold of me. I thought, "Stop bullshitting around..." But the telephone rang, and it was Bridgette [Wright] saying, "I manage a band called Jetboy. Would you be interested in coming and checking it out?" I said, "Yeah, sure. Send me a ticket."
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L-R: Billy Rowe, Ron Tostenson, Sami Yaffa,
Fernie Rod and Mickey Finn
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Sami: I was. For about a year, I didn't do shit! I was taking it easy — painting, drawing naked girls... Which was quite fun! And I was raising my son [Nicholas, named after the Hanoi Rocks drummer who was killed in a head-on collision while riding in a car driven by Mötley Crüe's Vince Neil].
Q: Did you know anything about Jetboy before you came over?
Sami: Yeah, when I got the message, I went to my old manager and asked him if he'd ever heard of them. He said, "Yeah, sure. Cherry Bombz played a gig with them." Then he asked if I wanted their demo tape. I remember I didn't like it too much.
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| Sami Yaffa & Bill Rowe Billy's broken arm kept him from playing the October 1987 Day on the Green show with Motley Crüe. Photo: Devorah Ostrov |
Sami: But it had such fucking personality, and I thought there was a lot of talent in the band.
Q: Billy, I know you guys are all big fans of Hanoi Rocks. You must have been pretty excited when you found out that Sami was coming over.
Billy: Yeah! We were like, "Shit!" But something inside all of us knew it was meant to be. Everyone just trips on how well it's worked out. It really pulled the band together.
Q: In October, Jetboy opened for Mötley Crüe, Whitesnake, and Poison in front of thousands of people at the Day on the Green. How did you guys arrange that?
Billy: It was all arranged through our agent. [Jetboy share the same booking agent as Mötley Crüe.] He said, "We need a band for the Day on the Green. Do you think they could do it?" Bridgette said, "Of course they can do it!"
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Jetboy's Mickey Finn shares this 1986 BAM
cover with Poison's Bret Michaels. |
(On the way up to the Bay Area from Los Angeles, Billy's car was hit almost head-on by an elderly man who'd had a heart attack and lost control over his car. A truck following Billy missed his car by inches and slammed into the other car. Mickey and Sami, who were riding with Billy, were slightly shaken up. However, Billy was put in the hospital for five days, with his arm broken in three places.)
Q: Maybe it's an omen. You're not meant to go anywhere near Mötley Crüe.
Sami: Not me! It freaks me out. I don't want to play with them again, to be honest. Keep them at a distance. They're nice guys, but it's a bad mix. I feel sorry for Vince, y'know. After the accident... I would hate to be in his fucking shoes. Let's talk about something else.
Q: Let's get back to the Day on the Green show. Did you expect that wild of a reaction from the crowd?
Billy: I knew they'd eat us up! Our tunes are pretty fucking rockin'! I mean, when people first look at us, they think we're fucking freaky looking. But after awhile they're saying, "but their tunes are sure kicking my ass!" I think we're gonna win over a lot of people, more so than people think.
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Apparently, there are individual pics of each of
the guys from this sensationally sartorial photo
session. However, Rave-Up was only sent this one picture of Sami Yaffa. |
Sami: I think he was impressed that we pulled it off without Billy; that we didn't cancel it because Billy broke his arm. I think a lot of bands would not have done it.
Billy: It's only gonna help us. And half those people, when they buy the record, won't even have noticed that I wasn't there.
Q: I can't wait to hear this record!
Sami: I'm so fucking happy with that album!
Q: How does it compare to Hanoi Rocks' albums?
Sami: Well, you can't really compare Hanoi Rocks to Jetboy. They're totally different. I loved the time I was in Hanoi. It was a great fucking band when it was together. There was never anything like that band and there never will be again. Jetboy is a totally different story, but it's the same kind of thing. There's never gonna be another band like Jetboy!
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* Please click on these links to read my other interviews with Jetboy:devorahostrov.blogspot.com/2018/07/jetboy-press-conference-is-held
devorahostrov.blogspot.com/2017/10/jetboy-year-into-their-glittering-career
* 2018 update: Jetboy has completed work on a NEW album, which will be released through Frontiers Music.
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