'Best of Me' -- Just Because

I was listening to RATT's Infestation last night and reminiscing a little. The listen really made me appreciate the album, the effort and also wish Warren DeMartini was still in the band. On my lunchtime run today I listened to "Best of Me" and it really gave me a little kick. And I was smiling too. Such a great song to head into the weekend.

Comments

[Jack T. Ripper]

Fantastic album!

[Him]

Agreed, Allyson and JTR! Agreed!

I'd love to know what Pearcy has against people like Crane and Cavazo, esp. when it seems that good old Blotz was right that adding the spicy dancing of Croucier back into the mix was going to be a bad thing (not that Blotz was always a good thing, to be fair). I think a new CD/Album/8-track/Reel-to-Reel with this set of musicians could be awesome.

And, just to rehash an old (but glorious) memory: I got to meet them on this tour and it was a mind trip! Pearcy seemed as sleazy (not really in a good way) and deluded as he could possibly be. Mr. Mars Bars was shy and not into talking (to me, to the interviewers, to anyone). Blotz, if I recall, wasn't there. But Crane and Cavazo were two of the kindest, most gracious, musicians I have ever met (and I have met more than a handful). Sure, not the originals. But they did well by that band's legacy while in Ratt. That should be celebrated.

Hard to believe it has been more than a decade since that was released! Time flew (nowadays, it is starting to fly a bit again!).

[Kixchix]

Him. Who is Mr Mars Bars? Warren?

It’s cool that this album probably is one of the best from our 80’s hero’s in the 2000’s. Wiki says it only sold 50,000. Wow.

[Gary]

If this song were released in 1986 instead of 2011 it would’ve incinerated the charts. Awesome song from a great album. 👍

[Him]

Yup, Kixchix, it is DeMartini. The guy is wealthy as hell (and, from reports, stoned most of the time). He has no need for drama. He wants to chill. And so he does. I think he plays when he wants because that is what he wants to do at that moment. And who can blame him for stepping away (or being forced out, if you read the tabloids!)?

I think it will take some frank discussions to get him back into the fold. Pearcy, to his credit, seems to be sending out feelers relating to that . . . in the media, of all places. Thing is, I hope he is also having those sorts of discussions in a personal way (akin to what must have gone with Blotz).

Personally? I think Croucier is the problem. But what do I know? I think (again) that the Infestation version of Ratt could put out a great album . . . again. Sure, as you note, it will move squat in terms of units sold. But who cares? And also note that the two hired guns back out, with grace and tact, when DeMartini decided he had enough. So the onus is really on Pearcy to rethink some of the deals he has made as of late. Do those crazy dance moves and the one-off Geico commercial really need to stand in the way of a final, glorious, swan song (or two).

And one final thing: the worst part of that Geico commercial was Croucier. Re-watch it. There is a point, towards the end, where he breaks character and actually looks at the camera and then does this "Oh my God! I shouldn't have done that!!" sorta' thing. Can he sing? Sure can (he is Ratt's Anthony). Can he dance? Nope. But neither can I. Thing is, I think he really thinks he is essential. Other thing is, he isn't . . . and that might be the realization that Pearcy needs, if he wants to truly go out in fine form.

[Bkallday]

Why do you call him Mr Mars Bars??? If I may ask.

[Him]

Based on what is posted (and I will eat it if I am wrong), he is a distant heir to the Mars fortune. The stoned thing? I just think that is true.

As was once posted (and this is just one of the more recent postings) in the legal filings when Blotz was fighting with the rest of the band:

Blotzer's attorney wrote: "While [DeMartini] has slowed down over the years, some say he has suffered hearing loss which does not allow him to play the guitar as he once did, and, as an heir to the Mars candy fortune, is comfortable and amenable to simply enjoying life at his home in the hills, Blotzer is not an heir to a family fortune that can keep funding a bank account through a trust fund. Also, Blotzer has a innate desire as an artist to continue to perform the music of RATT for the throngs of people that desperately want to see the music performed live; he is not comfortable just going gently into that goodnight. He wants to continue to rage against the dying of the light.

Truly, if this is an urban legend, I will issue a full apology. I give people a kick in the shorts when they spew stupid stuff. The same should go for me! But I did base most of my recent nickname-slinging on those snippets of court records. And, so far as I could see, nothing was ever mentioned about challenging that description (even if the case went against Blotz).

Thanks for asking, Bkallday.