A.J. Pero Dead at 55
It is with a very sad heart that the House of Hair has confirmed the death of Twisted Sister drummer, A.J. Pero, age 55.
A.J. Pero ~ October 14, 1959 – March 20, 2015
Pero died of an apparent heart attack, according to the AP. A.J. was touring with Adrenaline Mob, a group he played with between Twisted Sister gigs. Twisted Sister guitarist Jay Jay French told CNN that Pero was found unresponsive this morning (March 20) in his tour bus. He was taken to a hospital and died there, shortly after 11AM Eastern time.
Pero died of what appears to be a massive heart attack, his longtime agent Dan Stanton told CNN.
“He had been complaining of a sore arm all week and took a few days off from his tour with the band Adrenaline Mob,” says Stanton.
“We are devastated. He was a great guy and one of the best drummers,” Jay Jay French said. “To lose someone you have depended on for 33 years … I don’t know what it is going to be like to be on stage without him. I can’t even think about what it will be like.”
Twisted Sister posted on their Facebook page,
“The members of Twisted Sister are profoundly saddened to announce the untimely passing of our brother, AJ Pero
The band, crew and most importantly the family of AJ Pero thank you for your thoughts and prayers at this time.”
The members of Twisted Sister added their thoughts…
“Today I lost a brother. Anthony Jude Pero passed away. A.J. was the final piece in a band that would become an international sensation and one of the greatest live rock acts to ever hit the stage. His sledgehammer assault on the drums helped drive Twisted Sister and I to greatness and inspired me to rock every single show. My heart breaks knowing I will never feel the power of his beat behind me, or turn to see his face smiling broadly from the sheer joy he got from doing what he loved. I will always remember that smile. RIP my friend.”
~ Dee Snider
“AJ Pero was a force, the likes of which I doubt I will ever have the chance to play in front of again. His drumming was legendary but his heart, as a human being, was even greater.
This April 1st would have been his 32nd year as a member.
In the Twisted Sister world he was always affectionately known as “the new guy”. That is how long and deep our history was/is.
In our hearts he will always be the engine that drove the train. I loved him and today my heart has been ripped out. RIP”
~ Jay Jay French
This morning I received the tragic news about AJ’s passing. As anyone would be, I am devastated. With such a loss, even I broke down and cried, allegedly the tough guy in the band. One statement says it all, “AJ was my band mate, my friend and my brother and I will miss him forever”.
~ Mark ‘The Animal’ Mendoza
“My family, extended Twisted Sister family, and I are heartbroken and devastated to hear the news of Anthony Jude Pero’s passing. A.J. was a dear friend and brother to me, and in my opinion, one of the most talented drummers of all time. I will always remember the amazing experiences and great laughs we shared. A.J. always had an amazing sense of humor and did his best to please everyone he came in contact with.
Back in the day, when the band first started touring, we were often room-mates and he never failed to keep me smiling. It’s very difficult for me to talk about this right now. However, I feel that out of respect for his legacy, it’s important for us to let the world know how we all felt and will always feel about him. I know I will dearly miss him, but I’m grateful to have been his friend and musical partner for thirty-eight years.
At this time, my sincerest sympathies go out to his family. Heaven just got a great drummer, one that will live forever in our hearts.”
~ Eddie Ojeda and The Ojeda Family
Free bassist Andy Fraser is dead at 62. He passed away at his home in Temecula, CA of unknown causes, although he’s been dealing with AIDS and cancer in recent years. Just last month, Fraser appeared at a Rock Against Human Trafficking Grammy party where he played live. An official statement says: “Andrew McLan Fraser passed away on Monday at his home in California. He leaves behind his daughters Hannah and Jasmine Fraser, and their mother Ri, his sister Gail, brothers Gavin and Alex, and many friends and associates in the industry.”
Fraser was born in London and was a member of John Mayall’s Bluesbreakers before joining Free as their bass player at the tender age of 16. He is best known for creating the famous guitar riff in “All Right Now”. The song climbed to #1 in more than 20 countries and has been played millions of times.
In the 1980’s, Fraser was hit with bad health news twice – he was diagnosed with HIV and also had a rare form of cancer called Kaposi’s Sarcoma. He eventually came out as gay, which helped him to alleviate his suicidal thoughts.
Free were only active for a few years, but attained hits with “All Right Now”, “My Brother Jake” and “Wishing Well.” Fraser reunited with his Free bandmate Paul Rodgers in 1994 for a Woodstock anniversary. He also produced solo albums in 2005 and 2014.
Recently, Andy became a strong social activist and defender of human rights. He was in the planning stages to tour with his friend Frankie Miller, with whom he had tried to form a band decades ago.
Molly Hatchet drummer Bruce Crump has died at age 57, as the band announced on their Facebook page. No further details have been made available, although Crump had allegedly been fighting throat cancer for over a decade.
Bruce Crump was the original drummer with the rock band Molly Hatchet from 1976 to 1983 and 1984 to 1991.
The second Motörhead’s MotörBoat Cruise has been confirmed for 2015, sailing September 28 thru October 2, 2015. The initial artist lineup for MotörBoat has been announced. Joining the fun are Slayer, Motörhead, Anthrax, Suicidal Tendencies, Hatebreed, Exodus, Crobot, Phil Campbell’s All Starr Band, Motor Sister, Kyng, Fireball Ministry, Huntress and more!
Click here for ticketing and more MotörBoat Cruise information!
According to the Las Vegas Review-Journal, Vince Neil, lead singer of the rock band Mötley Crüe, filed a lawsuit claiming an Oregon woman has taken control of his social media accounts, and he wants them back. Neil states in the lawsuit that Kristy Sinsara is making unauthorized posts to his Facebook and Twitter accounts.
Apparently, Sinsara, who bills herself as a “social media strategist” was given the passwords to Neil’s accounts and then changed them, adding her own personal contact information.
“Even though Sinsara agreed to relinquish control over the accounts on December 26, 2014 and again on March 1, 2015, she has and continues to maintain control over the accounts and makes unauthorized posts on the accounts,” the lawsuit says.
The lawsuit also claims that Sinsara wrote this to Neil on Dec. 11: “Here’s the deal. I have a book coming out in a week. I’m going to pay myself for all of my hard work by using Vince’s account to promote it and then I am walking away from all of this. So in two weeks, I will give you everything (all access) – and should have the FB passwords by then, and you can take me off of it ALL! It’s ALL YOURS.” She goes on to say, “I just posted on Vince’s Facebook page that I will no longer be working with him as of March 1st, and gave myself a final shout out (as payment) for the last 1.5 years of building his image on social media. As of then the security lock down will be done and I’ll change the email and password to whatever you’d like.”
As always, more to come in the Vince Neil world in the following weeks!
WE LOVE THIS! Formed in 2001, The Iron Maidens have quickly established themselves as one of SoCal’s most popular tribute acts and are rapidly gaining international recognition and starting to tour the world.
Recognize these names?
THE IRON MAIDENS is:
• Kirsten Rosenberg (a.k.a. Bruce Chickinson) – Lead Vocals
• Linda McDonald (a.k.a. Nikki McBurrain) – Drums
• Wanda Ortiz (a.k.a. Steph Harris) – Bass
• Courtney Cox (a.k.a. Adriana Smith) – Guitar
• Nikki Stringfield (a.k.a. Davina Murray) – Guitar
If you want to see Bruce Chickinson and her bandmates rock out, check out their version of “The Trooper” right here.
In an ongoing Twitter feud, our host with the most Dee Snider has waved the white flag and issued an apology to Doug Aldrich, after disparaging him for claiming to be “Doug Aldrich of Whitesnake” rather than “Doug Aldrich playing with Whitesnake”. Like others who joined bands after their hit albums, Snider says, “[He’s] a paid sideman. He’s on salary. He’s not a band member. None of these guys are band members. It’s something I’m very passionate about, and that’s why I got upset.”
Dee goes on to acknowledge The House of Hair’s part in this whole Twitter dustup: “I have a [radio] show called ‘House Of Hair’. [In the] eighteen years [that I have hosted the show], we’ve never played a Whitesnake record with a Doug Aldrich song on it. I’m sorry, Doug. We’ve never played a KISS record with any of the guys after Bruce Kulick. [You wanna know] why? Because we’re a hits show. We play hits. We plays songs people know, songs people wanna hear, songs people love. And there’s a reason for it. Because these are the defining records, these are the defining musicians, this is the music of these people’s lives, and that’s what my show gives to them. Again, I’m not the producer, but this is what we give to them.”
