Christopher P. Hilton (author)

Chuck Shute Podcast

Episode 126 - Christopher P. Hilton! Christopher wrote a great book, "The Rise, Fall & Rebirth of Hair Metal." This is the most comprehensive book on the subject I have ever seen. It starts off with defining the term hair metal, how it came to fruition and takes it from the beginning to present day. He covers all the big groups including Van Halen, Bon Jovi, Def Leppard, Motley Crue, Poison, and more. But he also does a deep dive with many releases I was not familiar with but glad I discovered. In this interview we skim the contents of the book including many interesting facts such as the guest vocalist on Warrant's "Cherry Pie", Slash auditioning for Poison, and which hair band Christopher never really got in to. Great stuff!
0:00:00 - Intro
0:01:13 - Christopher's Background
0:05:25 - The Term "Hair Metal"
0:09:12 - Hair Metal Fanatic
0:11:12 - Van Halen & Hair Metal Roots
0:14:37 - Motley Crue's Transition to Hair Metal
0:18:27 - Van Halen's "Jump" & David Lee Roth Movie
0:21:55 - Bon Jovi "Slippery When Wet"
0:24:08 - Slash Auditions for Poison
0:26:00 - Guns 'N Roses & Appetite for Destruction
0:28:28 - Nikki Sixx & "Girls, Girls, Girls"
0:30:32 - Dude Looks a Lady
0:32:20 - Motley Crue's Sobriety
0:34:43 - Warrant's "Heaven" & "Cherry Pie"
0:37:20 - Young Guns 2 & "Blaze of Glory"
0:38:58 - Rock in 1991 & Skid Row's Slave to the Grind
0:41:50 - GnR & Use Your Illusion Albums
0:45:15 - Danger Danger "Monkey Business"
0:46:30 - Musicianship & Songwriting of Hair Metal Vs Grunge
0:48:35 - Warrant's Grunge Demo
0:52:43 - MTV & Radio Killing Hair Metal
0:55:50 - Motley Crue, LA Guns & Dangerous Toys in 1994
0:58:15 - Skid Row's "Subhuman Race" Album
0:59:48 - Warrant "Ultraphobic" Album
1:00:50 - Vince Neil "Carved in Stone" Album
1:02:50 - Firehouse Music Video & Overseas Success
1:04:35 - Resurgence of Hair Metal
1:09:33 - Steel Panther & New Hair Bands
1:12:20 - Dokken
1:13:21 - Conversation with Nikki Sixx
1:15:00 - Jain Lane Story
1:16:10 - Oversaturation of Music & Music News
1:17:33 - Potential Playlist of Best Hair Metal Music
1:19:10 - Editing the Book
1:21:32 - Humane Society of Charlotte
1:22:29 - Wrap Up

The Book on Amazon:
https://www.amazon.com/Rise-Fall-Rebirth-Hair-Metal/dp/0578654032

Humane Society of Charlotte:
https://humanesocietyofcharlotte.org

Chuck Shute Website:
http://chuckshute.com

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