Pilson is just a working man's musician. Been to the top of the mountain and toiled everywhere in between. Such a level headed professional. Respect the hell out of this man.
Jeff Pilson is not only a bass guitar God. He's one of the most down to earth, nicest guys you could ever meet. Talked to him many times at the Rainbow in Hollywood and at countless NAMM shows. Always has time for others. Really great guy.
why is he an imposter ? how come these dudes don't write and play their own shit ? oh okay - cause they aren't talented enough - Whatever - knock Don Dokken all you want - at least he sings songs he wrote or stole from George
As a teen, I would sit outside Burbank Studios room Dokken would be rehearsing in. After hours of jamming, Jeff would emerge, energy level one past 10, pinned at 11, huge smile for a total stranger: "Man you wanna hear the new album!!?" We sat in my Toyota pickup listening to every track, it was awesome. He is the most humble, gracious and kind musician I've ever met.
Cool he talked about the Dio tour as I saw Dokken open for Dio on Jeff's birthday (Feb 19th) in Saginaw MI on the Tooth and Nail tour. They were GREAT. From my memory, they played the entire album with the exception of Heartless Heart. and also Breaking the Chains. I used to memorize the best I could what bands played. On a side note, I saw that Dio tour twice- the first with Twisted Sister in Clarkston MI
Yeah! Compare THAT to "The DON," OVER in Germany showing OFF "HIS other house (castle)" and "HOW YOU like it, HE LIKES IT TOO" and OR?.."Get tha STINKING camera outta my face!".... Yeah, DON'S A REALLY COOL GUY!". 🤨😕🙄😒 Dude's ALWAYS BEEN a colossal pryck 😒
I opened for Dokken in like 97 or so? My band was popular in the Harrisburg Pa area. We would get a lot of the big openers then. Jeff, George and especially Mick were GREAT! Mick brought my drummer and myself on the tour bus. Don acted like we should be humbled by meeting him. I am singer and guitar player at that time I was playing 5 nights a week and working a day job. Don couldnt sing the songs and kept pointing to his throat like it was too high or something. I sang everything from Van Halen, Queen, Soundgarden, Pearl Jam, Aerosmith to my own songs. 5 nights a week and he gave me a dead fish handshake and said your welcome. Mick Jeff and George, thank you for a memorable night
@@brianseneca3546Heard the SAME/similar on the road stories time and time AGAIN from plenty of OTHER opening bands players throughout the decades, man.... ONE thing that ALWAYS HAS BEEN THE SAME? THAT wet fish handshake of Donny's 😬....Lol. Loved Dokken's MUSIC and Lynch in the 80s.. ALWAYS knew/thought DON WAS the problem... He HAS ALWAYS thought that "his singing" was soooo much better than ALL the other Hard ROCK/ Hair METAL bands from then.... SMDH 😒
@@victormihai3929 It was at The Summit in Houston, TX. Funny, I thought Twisted Sister was the loudest band I've ever seen (the night Dokken opened for them)! 😆😆
Met this band back in 86 monsters of rock tour, my buddy was tending bar at the embassy suites hotel in troy mi called me up and said dokken was hanging out at the bar, me and another friend went up to the hotel and got hammered and hung out with these guy's for a bit, Don was stuck on himself, George was kinda laid back and didnt say much, Mick brown was yelling at them to hurry up for the band meeting, Jeff pilson hung out and bs'd with us for a good 30 mins, totally cool and down to earth, i mean we were just 19yr old punks at the time but he didnt care was very curious on how dokken was being perceived in detroit at that time and what we thought about hair metal and what not, just a really cool dude!
The year was 88 . I was at the first of two shoes at the Silverdome. I've always been a fan of Dokken, but I felt horrible for them having to play after Metallica. The crowd for Dokken was worn out .
I too saw the Last in Line tour with Dokken opening. I saw them in Evansville Indiana. As a guitar player it was great. Seeing George and Vivian the same night was awesome.
Hey man I was at the same Dio/Dokken concert at Reunion Arena! It was my second concert, the first was Judas Priest about six months earlier. I remember all the church people were outside trying to save us from Satan and I told them I went to church every Sunday haha. Wish I could go back to '84 and stay there forever.
Wow! That might've been my second concert, too. My first concert was Judas Priest/Great White at Reunion on their Defenders tour. Was that your first concert?
Yep that was my first, it was in April and I was 17. I went by myself and sat way in the back on the 2nd level. It was just me and this older Vietnam veteran and he came over and shared a joint with me haha. @@fullinbloom
I remember seeing Dokken during the Aerosmith tour, and it still ranks as one of my favorite shows. After the concert we got to talk to Jeff and Don out in the parking lot. It was just so cool. Very down to earth, and very appreciative to the fans. I recall seeing George running to the bus and I yelled "George!" he waved and went into the bus. Don and Jeff looked at me, and said "Oh, he's shy, he won't come over. " Just such a cool experience. Hopefully Jeff sees my comment. Another super cool interview! 🤘❤️
I also got to meet George and Mick in Oakland after their show. I didn't stick around to watch Aerosmith. George talked to a small group of us behind the building for a very long time and signed autographs. He checked his pockets for guitar picks but didn't have any, so he went back inside Oakland Coliseum and brought back guitar picks to give out! The picks said Mr. Scary, of course. ☠️ I was over the moon!!! George Lynch is still my absolute favorite guitar player of all time!
The first Don Dokken album after Dokken broke up was fucking great. The first 2 Lynch Mob albums were awesome. We got cheated out of some awesome Dokken music for sure.
Tooth & Nail was great but you can tell in terms of the solos that the phrasing was a tad simpler & George even said early on he was still figuring things out. Back for the Attack’s solos by comparison were elite. The one for Heaven Sent still is blistering. Such a great tone, as well.
_Back for the Attack_ is their best record. Great riffs, and Lynch's solos are phenomenal. He was at his peak at the time, and deservedly recognised as one of the best in the business. World class phrasing, a unique sound, great tone, and that vibrato.
What stood out to me was on that monsters of Rock tour when Mick Brown went into that double bass attack on tooth and nail..........tearing it up in the daytime........burning it down at night!
Massive respect to Jeff! If you’re playing bass or just starting out, you can listen to the early Dokken stuff and that, imo is the blueprint for rock solid bass playing, intelligently done, with a great tone and his sound comes through. No easy feat to shine through when George Lynch is your guitarist! That being said, what a humble, down to earth guy. Never hear of any drama coming from him, stays busy, looks like he’s still in great shape - just a phenomenal influence for guys starting out and veterans alike. As a fan how could you not love this guy and wish him the absolute best?? Now and I think everyone has figured this out, man when you hear the others talk, it just seems more and more that Don was not an easy guy to be in a band with. Great talent but, it sounds like studio time, tour bus time…man I’m sure you needed a certain level of patience to make it work!
I've been a Dokken fan since forever and every time I hear Jeff speak, I hear the voice of reason in the band. He's one of the reasons I learned bass and how to sing backup.
I visited Jeff's studio Pilsound in Van Nuys about 33 years ago. He showed me the demos of these Craig Goldie recordings. It was amazing. Sounded better than anything out at the time.
13th Floor I believe.I was Craig Goldy's student at the time and Craig was playing stuff for me,insane.tone raven-guitar(We Are The Black Things)Hollywood
@@TONERAVENTUNES whatever it was he alluded to it being known players but he couldn't tell me who it was. We were going to do a demo and he was just showing me the studio discussing the plan. He just played a little bit of it for me and I was blown away.
Yeah same here. It came out in December 85 so I played the hell out of it all winter. I can remember cruising 40 miles to a new years eve party with some friends when there was a foot of snow on the ground and very cold. Good times.
I was a huge Dokken fan back in the mid to late 80's. George is probably the biggest reason I picked up a guitar. I thought Back for the attack was killer. When it came out, I was blown away. The band was just getting better and better!
Jeff Pilson's 'side of the story' in this interview I think is the closest to being the 'real story' of what happened with Dokken. He seems to be a credible person.
Miss seeing Mick out there pounding it out that dude is a real deal criminally underrated drummer and just a damn good human being the couple of times that I've had the honor of being around him he's been nothing but kind to me
I was in a band long ago, did a gig at Niles Station. The other band on the bill was a Hendrix impersonator named Randy Hansen, and Jeff was the bassist. After the show , Jeff and I were having a beer and talking, and I said he needed a stand up real singer, and needed to do original songs. He shushed me! Didn't want Randy to hear that. But that's exactly what he did.
First time saw Dokken was early 1984 at age 16 in Lakeland Fl. I think was triple header Twisted Sister Y&T, Dokken. Twisted was headliner. At the time Tooth and Nail had just came out and I didn’t even know who Dokken was. Really was going to see Twisted Sister they were huge at the time. I was pretty blown away by Dokken and Lynch’s guitar playing. I was right up against the stage. I ran out and got Tooth and Nail after that day and was a fan since. I saw them again at Tampa Stadium at Monsters of Rock 1988 after Back for the Attack came out. Then didn’t see them again until 1995 when they got back together for the Dysfunctional album. Very good album imo. That was at small outdoor venue Janus Landing maybe 4,000 people. I was front of stage again. Don looked wasted and was on a stool a lot. lol. Lynch was ripped and on steroids back then.
Saw that same tour in Salt Lake City...well most of it. My friends and I lit a joint right as the house lights went down for Twisted Sisted and when everyone rushed the stage, we were left there like sitting ducks and got busted and thrown out😂😂😂
Jeff Pilson sounds like a cool dude. It's great to see and hear his long success in music. Dokken was awesome... and his musicianship in Foreigner is elite. Definitely going to check out The End Machine. Great interview.
Love the interview as always. Good job. Wish Jeff and the guys will release those old days live videos he said he was watchin', whatever the quality 😜 It's a sin we just have Philly and little bit more.
Jeff, you're the dream band member every musician should have, SIr! \m/\m/ Thanks for the great legacy of tunes you've made for us 80's rockers to fall back on in this age of lame mass produced music.
Yeah I was surprised he thought it could have been even better because that’s their best IMO. George’s guitar sounded freaking amazing & the songs were some of their best.
I saw both of those tours back in the day...Damn...What a great time in music we were lucky enough to witness and be a part of. It really was a way of life...Still is. Cheers, J
One thing that seems to get left out or even altered is that it was in the press that Don was breaking up the band right before the Monsters Of Rock tour. They make it sound like it happened on the tour, but I went to one of those shows and I clearly remember reading that he was breaking up the band and thinking how crazy it was that they were about to go on a stadium tour and they were done. And just how insane it was that he couldn't wait until after the tour to announce it. It's no wonder George didn't want to be there. Not only did that kill there vibe, but going on right after Metallica when they were absolutely on fire didn't do Dokken any favors either. But yeah, I'm surprised no one ever mentions that, Don killed the band BEFORE the stadium tour!
Back for the Attack was AWESOME. I mean, I was only like 13 but I remember it being a big technical leap forward from their previous albums. Then Beast from the East came out. Holy cow what an awesome live album. ‘Twas a Beast!
Back for the attack was one of the all time best records ever. The guitar tone was just the apex of tone. Georges later stuff was great too, but that tone on BFTA was just other worldly..
May 1986 I was 14 years old and saw my first concert at the St.Paul Civic Center. Judas Priest/Dokken. $20 for decent seats. My mind and ears were blown when it was over. The lights came on and you could cut the reefer and marlboro smoke with a knife. So glad I grew up in the decade of metal
“We did a lot of cocaine”, I would never expect to hear that from any 80’s rock band. I wonder if there was a constant supply of young women too…..nah.
My first concert at age 13 at the Cow Palace. I was blow away by Jake. Then I saw them on ultimate sin and came home to find all my guitars and equipment stolen while at that show. I love jakes playing. One of the greatest!
Dokken may have been lumped in with other hair/glam metal bands of the time, but their music was always more complex and heavier than say bands like Poison, Motley Crue, Quiet Riot, and Ratt etc, even on Under Lock and Key, with it's commercial appeal, and slick production aimed at radio play, they we're still able to pull off the difficult balancing of growing their fanbase and maintaining their integrity.
AS DO I...Saw'em at Iowa Jam '85&can only imagine how much tix would be today? $15 Advanced $17 Day of Show; Armored Saint, Dokken, Metallica, Ted Nugent&Aerosmith. Saw Metallica week later in Omaha w/Armored Saint for about same $. It was 3rd time seeing both Ted&Aerosmith. What was awesome about Aerosmith during that era was the energy&level of their shows w/o gimmicks. Done w/Mirrors was the next time I saw them after Iowa Jam&arguably one of their best next to Permanent Vacation.
I'm just kidding around. Easy mistake. I love your channel. You should have far more subscribers. You have a really distinctive voice which is a good thing 👍@@fullinbloom
Jeff is pretty cool, he also used to sell blow, I used to buy from him lol he lived across the street from me on Poinsettia in Hollywood, good he got sober.
I saw a video were Don said he didn’t do drugs. Then I see an interview of George Lynch talking about them all doing lines off of Freddy’s blades on his glove during the filming of the Dream Warriors music video. What is there to be ashamed about it was the 80’s everyone was doing coke
Tooth and Nail - Under lock and key - THAT is the Dokken we fell in love with at that time. And MTV was the other part to their success, a lot of bands success of that time. It was visual, they could put out a video that painted the right vibe, right theme - so many vid were dumb as fuck and got weirder as the music video/artistic expression crossed over. Imagine a world back then with the internet? All we had were press statements, magazine interviews, radio DJ's and of course, with MTV, we got news/rumors? shit about bands - But no matter how bad it was for some people, a lot of it was "What has Ozzy done now?" that took the spotlight, or Motley Crue busting up hotels, drunk, OD, Razzle (rest in peace dear Rocker) ~ but even with that, Don Dokken was heavily rumored, Heavily, to being a real dickhead sob. That was kind of the message I recall was out there, or someone wanted out there. And of course, the split with he and George got real public for the time. Fans didn't give a fuck about that, we wanted more Dokken but it got pissed away, gone forever. But hey man, the radio only plays a few songs in total, there's no bad shit on their records man, not those 2 albums anyway. But that's how it was then. People came and went like a fucking mini mall. Jeff for example, how many fkn bands are in his credits? I mean, he was everywhere. Like whenever someone needed a bass player, a better bass player it's like someone would say "Hey, What's Pilson doing right now?" ... HAHA! But like Jeff said - Don on Val's and booze? Jeff and everyone else on the planet in the 80's were lining it up day and night man - they can both point at each other and claim "You're a buzz kill dude" and they're both right - Should've got Don on the train man, might have been different. But to be real? Lynch Mob release? Fucking badass! and overnight, there's George on MTV slashing it! Hey, same guitar, you know you're listening to Dokken's guitarist. Guitar players all had their own accent and voice through strings - like a fingerprint for a true fan Like yeah man, wish you had worked it out but oh well, we'll take what we can! Rock on! Drawing on memory? Don blamed it all on George wanting the musical direction to go his way, shine on his guitar - Don wanted to elevate to some cerebral awakening stage of enlightenment - fuck if I know, but it didn't fly, Don was the dick in the peanut butter is what we all walked away with, least in our bubble. But like I said, no internet, no real way of knowing, that's what we were fed. Wasn't there also an age gap with Don? He was kind of long in the tooth I seem to recall - without looking it up, that's what I'm vibing on memory recall - one thing for sure, we're all old as fuck today looking back to those glorious times.
That was good stuff. I always felt that Jeff, was one of the hardest working musicians out there. As for George too. But Jeff just seems to be everywhere. 😎👍✌️
Bloom- once again, another Puzzle Piece on a Saturday morning here in Phoenix as I sip my coffee! ☕️ Jeff Rules! That Cow Palace ticket is priceless. I actually have to move back to the Bay to look after my mom and dad soon. Keep rockin brother🎶🎸🎤
I just finished my blog on 'Shadowlife.' I am 45, so Dokken for me were just about to break up by the time i really discovered them and fell in love with the band. For years, I only had what was written in magizines and older people who had more inside knowledge on what happened. When the band got back together i was in High School and listened to a lot of Pantera, Sepultura, Type O Negative, Rollins Band, Stabbing Westward, White Zombie, Fear Factory, you get the point but I still came back to Dokken. I always attibuted the issues to George and Don as egos that couldn't communicate to a level where they could hash out their greievences towards one another. I feel like this is still present in 2024. Jeff has always been the senseable one. Mick always seemed like he was just glad to be there and then you have Don and George. As Jeff said, when the band was focused on 'making kickass music and the live performance to go with it," the band was at its best. I would love to sit down with Jeff and talk about some of those records, specifically the heavier direction the band was going with their music from 'Back for the Attack' through 'Dysfunctional' and than, we get to 'Shadowlife.' Then "Erase the Slate.' Even George was getting heavier as a gututarist. It was there, they could have done some real wild stuff. Going through old video peformances the live shows to me seemed much heavier than the recorded albums did and I always wished the Dokken would have pushed the heavier more metal sound than the arena, popular rock that was being pushed out at the time. How many bands from that era that had the arena sound could transition into actual heavier metal? A few but not all and certainly not many. I'd put Dokken in there that if they wanted to be heavier/darker band, sonically, they could have pulled it off. Instead, Elektra tries to sell them as a glam band. I know it is retrospectively but I always felt this. Give me a time machine, the raw recordings. pro-tools, and a pitchshifter and I will give you a Dokken sound that sounds live but in the studio. That is how I always was hoping the sound would evolve and the best we got was a handful of shows over the course of 15 years that showcase these things from the band.
I believe I have all these dates correct.... In Nov 1987, I went to see Aerosmith at the Capital Center near DC. My whole reason for going was Dokken. They hit the stage and were tearing it up. Suddenly, around the second or third song, there was no guitar. I didn't see what happened. They finished the song, and then one of them said something like, "George is on his back. He's had the flu. He's very sick and can't continue." I was so pissed. Then, in June 1988, I saw the Monsters of Rock tour at RFK Stadium in DC. Dokken was there and kicked ass!!! Great show. All the bands were great. But the highlight is, in Aug 2001, my band got to open for Lynch Mob at Jaxx in Springfield, VA. What a great night. George and the guys were very cool. After the show, we grabbed some food, chatted a little, and took some photos. I feel very honored to have been able to have experiences like that.
Lol...I was at that show Capital Center show. My recollection was George was drunk as shit, and he was just leaning up against one of his stacks not really playing by the 2nd or 3rd song, and then their set was over. Given all of the talk from the various members about their drug use, I'm going with my version and not the flu :). Obviously, I have no real proof, but it would be the more rock 'n roll version. \m/
I used to sell Jeff some back-up cartridges back in late-90's and early 2000's for his studio. I would touch base with him every couple months and he was a steady customer. Being a huge Dokken fan this was a real treat to have conversations with him plus make a little commission, a win win. He is hands down the nicest gentleman I have ever known from the music business and living and performing in LA for over 20 years, I have met many successful artists from my favorite bands. He is a sweetheart of a guy. So fun to talk to. A real class act.
Pilson is just a working man's musician. Been to the top of the mountain and toiled everywhere in between. Such a level headed professional. Respect the hell out of this man.
Jeff Pilson is not only a bass guitar God. He's one of the most down to earth, nicest guys you could ever meet. Talked to him many times at the Rainbow in Hollywood and at countless NAMM shows. Always has time for others. Really great guy.
why is he an imposter ? how come these dudes don't write and play their own shit ? oh okay - cause they aren't talented enough -
Whatever - knock Don Dokken all you want - at least he sings songs he wrote or stole from George
@@davidrice3337 WTF are you talking about?
Only one God! God of the Bible! God bless you. Jesus saves!
Jesus. Be nice.
I always saw him around the Valley. Man… is the Bow still open? I’d love some of that pizza again🔥
As a teen, I would sit outside Burbank Studios room Dokken would be rehearsing in. After hours of jamming, Jeff would emerge, energy level one past 10, pinned at 11, huge smile for a total stranger: "Man you wanna hear the new album!!?" We sat in my Toyota pickup listening to every track, it was awesome. He is the most humble, gracious and kind musician I've ever met.
Cool he talked about the Dio tour as I saw Dokken open for Dio on Jeff's birthday (Feb 19th) in Saginaw MI on the Tooth and Nail tour. They were GREAT. From my memory, they played the entire album with the exception of Heartless Heart. and also Breaking the Chains. I used to memorize the best I could what bands played. On a side note, I saw that Dio tour twice- the first with Twisted Sister in Clarkston MI
The best part of Dokken’s Unchained the Night video is Jeff’s banter with George while recording in the hotel room.
Scrotum Sound 😂
Deep knee bends.
Yeah! Compare THAT to "The DON," OVER in Germany showing OFF "HIS other house (castle)" and "HOW YOU like it, HE LIKES IT TOO" and OR?.."Get tha STINKING camera outta my face!".... Yeah, DON'S A REALLY COOL GUY!". 🤨😕🙄😒 Dude's ALWAYS BEEN a colossal pryck 😒
Jeff is the most honest man I have ever heard in the music business.
Back For The Attack is a great album ... I think it is them at their peak ...would have been hard to top it musically
Definitely has its moments, but could have been better, like Jeff said. Probably more compact in a way. ✌️
I agree, this was next level Dokken
Met Jeff in 1998 with Dokken. Such an awesome guy that just talked with us for about an hour. Awesome guy! 🤘🏽🤘🏽🤘🏽
I feel Jeff is probably the most reliable source for anything Dokken past.
I opened for Dokken in like 97 or so? My band was popular in the Harrisburg Pa area. We would get a lot of the big openers then. Jeff, George and especially Mick were GREAT! Mick brought my drummer and myself on the tour bus. Don acted like we should be humbled by meeting him. I am singer and guitar player at that time I was playing 5 nights a week and working a day job. Don couldnt sing the songs and kept pointing to his throat like it was too high or something. I sang everything from Van Halen, Queen, Soundgarden, Pearl Jam, Aerosmith to my own songs. 5 nights a week and he gave me a dead fish handshake and said your welcome. Mick Jeff and George, thank you for a memorable night
I too, have experienced the Dokken dead fish handshake. He was cordial though and sighed my vintage vinyl for me.
@@CharlieMoney777 Not hard to tell at all. This was my experience. Not bragging at all
@@brianseneca3546Heard the SAME/similar on the road stories time and time AGAIN from plenty of OTHER opening bands players throughout the decades, man.... ONE thing that ALWAYS HAS BEEN THE SAME? THAT wet fish handshake of Donny's 😬....Lol. Loved Dokken's MUSIC and Lynch in the 80s.. ALWAYS knew/thought DON WAS the problem... He HAS ALWAYS thought that "his singing" was soooo much better than ALL the other Hard ROCK/ Hair METAL bands from then.... SMDH 😒
I saw Dokken open for Twisted Sister in Feb. 1986. They were great! I was blown away when I heard them in 1984.
Where was that -Sundance? Hammerheads? Dokken was the loudest band I've ever seen but that was at the live show at CPI.
@@victormihai3929 It was at The Summit in Houston, TX. Funny, I thought Twisted Sister was the loudest band I've ever seen (the night Dokken opened for them)! 😆😆
Met this band back in 86 monsters of rock tour, my buddy was tending bar at the embassy suites hotel in troy mi called me up and said dokken was hanging out at the bar, me and another friend went up to the hotel and got hammered and hung out with these guy's for a bit, Don was stuck on himself, George was kinda laid back and didnt say much, Mick brown was yelling at them to hurry up for the band meeting, Jeff pilson hung out and bs'd with us for a good 30 mins, totally cool and down to earth, i mean we were just 19yr old punks at the time but he didnt care was very curious on how dokken was being perceived in detroit at that time and what we thought about hair metal and what not, just a really cool dude!
The year was 88 . I was at the first of two shoes at the Silverdome. I've always been a fan of Dokken, but I felt horrible for them having to play after Metallica. The crowd for Dokken was worn out .
Right 88, my mind isnt what it used to be🤣 still it was really cool meeting them!
I too saw the Last in Line tour with Dokken opening. I saw them in Evansville Indiana. As a guitar player it was great. Seeing George and Vivian the same night was awesome.
Hey man I was at the same Dio/Dokken concert at Reunion Arena! It was my second concert, the first was Judas Priest about six months earlier. I remember all the church people were outside trying to save us from Satan and I told them I went to church every Sunday haha. Wish I could go back to '84 and stay there forever.
People who weren't around in the 80s have no idea how great it was..Rockin With Dokken-Dealin With Dio!
Wow! That might've been my second concert, too. My first concert was Judas Priest/Great White at Reunion on their Defenders tour. Was that your first concert?
Yep that was my first, it was in April and I was 17. I went by myself and sat way in the back on the 2nd level. It was just me and this older Vietnam veteran and he came over and shared a joint with me haha. @@fullinbloom
Back for the Attack was an INCREDIBLE album! I really can't imagine it getter any better.
I remember seeing Dokken during the Aerosmith tour, and it still ranks as one of my favorite shows. After the concert we got to talk to Jeff and Don out in the parking lot. It was just so cool. Very down to earth, and very appreciative to the fans. I recall seeing George running to the bus and I yelled "George!" he waved and went into the bus. Don and Jeff looked at me, and said "Oh, he's shy, he won't come over. " Just such a cool experience. Hopefully Jeff sees my comment. Another super cool interview! 🤘❤️
I also got to meet George and Mick in Oakland after their show. I didn't stick around to watch Aerosmith. George talked to a small group of us behind the building for a very long time and signed autographs. He checked his pockets for guitar picks but didn't have any, so he went back inside Oakland Coliseum and brought back guitar picks to give out! The picks said Mr. Scary, of course. ☠️ I was over the moon!!! George Lynch is still my absolute favorite guitar player of all time!
The first Don Dokken album after Dokken broke up was fucking great. The first 2 Lynch Mob albums were awesome. We got cheated out of some awesome Dokken music for sure.
- yes, I agree first two Lynch Mob albums were bad ass. I never listened to the Don Dokken solo album.
@@debu9374Up From the Ashes - I recommend it, some good ones on there in my opinion.
Not a bad song on Up From the Ashes.
Back for the Attack is my absolute favorite Dokken album. For me, that is where George took the gloves off as a guitar player.
Tooth & Nail was great but you can tell in terms of the solos that the phrasing was a tad simpler & George even said early on he was still figuring things out. Back for the Attack’s solos by comparison were elite. The one for Heaven Sent still is blistering. Such a great tone, as well.
BS
_Back for the Attack_ is their best record. Great riffs, and Lynch's solos are phenomenal. He was at his peak at the time, and deservedly recognised as one of the best in the business. World class phrasing, a unique sound, great tone, and that vibrato.
Agreed 👍💯
Indeed.
Excellent interview..
enjoyed it..☝️
Dokken was one of my favorite bands growing up, I only got to see them once back in the 80s.
Jeff is a great guy who I have had the pleasure of meeting and he is an extremely talented musician as well, a class act.
It's awesome seeing rockers meditating!!!🙏❤
What stood out to me was on that monsters of Rock tour when Mick Brown went into that double bass attack on tooth and nail..........tearing it up in the daytime........burning it down at night!
I love that Jeff is so honest. By the way, I really miss Dio.
Great interview
Jeff still kicks serious ass 🎉
Massive respect to Jeff! If you’re playing bass or just starting out, you can listen to the early Dokken stuff and that, imo is the blueprint for rock solid bass playing, intelligently done, with a great tone and his sound comes through. No easy feat to shine through when George Lynch is your guitarist! That being said, what a humble, down to earth guy. Never hear of any drama coming from him, stays busy, looks like he’s still in great shape - just a phenomenal influence for guys starting out and veterans alike. As a fan how could you not love this guy and wish him the absolute best?? Now and I think everyone has figured this out, man when you hear the others talk, it just seems more and more that Don was not an easy guy to be in a band with. Great talent but, it sounds like studio time, tour bus time…man I’m sure you needed a certain level of patience to make it work!
I've been a Dokken fan since forever and every time I hear Jeff speak, I hear the voice of reason in the band. He's one of the reasons I learned bass and how to sing backup.
Good band name...VOR - Voice of Reason 😂
I remember this guy when he played in STEEL DRAGON.
🤘😜
With Michael Starr
And Curt Cutty.
@@vermontbred 🤣 would love to hear Steel Panther cover We All Die Young
Met Jeff back in 2009 in Germany at a Foreigner show….. one of the coolest and nicest guys I’ve met…
I visited Jeff's studio Pilsound in Van Nuys about 33 years ago. He showed me the demos of these Craig Goldie recordings. It was amazing. Sounded better than anything out at the time.
13th Floor I believe.I was Craig Goldy's student at the time and Craig was playing stuff for me,insane.tone raven-guitar(We Are The Black Things)Hollywood
@@TONERAVENTUNES whatever it was he alluded to it being known players but he couldn't tell me who it was. We were going to do a demo and he was just showing me the studio discussing the plan. He just played a little bit of it for me and I was blown away.
Dokken was a big part of my youth and for some reason “Under Lock And Key” always reminded me of winter time! Great time in my life thank you Jeff!
Yeah same here. It came out in December 85 so I played the hell out of it all winter. I can remember cruising 40 miles to a new years eve party with some friends when there was a foot of snow on the ground and very cold. Good times.
....I should add that we played ULAK the whole way and back. Ahhh to be able to go back to those times eh?
ULAK definitely seems to have a ‘mood’ to it that none of their other albums did. Great record.
I was a huge Dokken fan back in the mid to late 80's. George is probably the biggest reason I picked up a guitar. I thought Back for the attack was killer. When it came out, I was blown away. The band was just getting better and better!
I saw Dokken on the Aerosmith tour and it was a great concert. I was a huge Dokken fan back then and was great seeing them live at their peak
Back for the attack was one of the best all around records of all time. The mix, the solos, the arrangements...pure magic.
I'm a guitarist and play along with Back for the Attack almost daily as my warmup! You're right about best record of all time!
Jeff Pilson's 'side of the story' in this interview I think is the closest to being the 'real story' of what happened with Dokken. He seems to be a credible person.
Gossip is a feminine trait.
@@billsmith288is that you don😂😂😂. Is this your troll account. Love ya buddy
Back for the Attack is my favorite Dokken album. "Even better"? WOW
I was at the same Dio/Dokken show you were at in Dallas. November 1984 at Reunion Arena. Good show.
I was there. George’s tone filled Reunion fully.
Miss seeing Mick out there pounding it out that dude is a real deal criminally underrated drummer and just a damn good human being the couple of times that I've had the honor of being around him he's been nothing but kind to me
I saw Dokken open for Twisted Sister in 1984. Y&T was the 2nd band . I remember Tooth and Nail. I went and bought Tooth and Nail after that show.
Jeff and George are great guys.
LoL.😝
I was in a band long ago, did a gig at Niles Station. The other band on the bill was a Hendrix impersonator named Randy Hansen, and Jeff was the bassist. After the show , Jeff and I were having a beer and talking, and I said he needed a stand up real singer, and needed to do original songs. He shushed me! Didn't want Randy to hear that. But that's exactly what he did.
Randy Hansen. What a good guitar player.
First time saw Dokken was early 1984 at age 16 in Lakeland Fl. I think was triple header Twisted Sister Y&T, Dokken. Twisted was headliner. At the time Tooth and Nail had just came out and I didn’t even know who Dokken was. Really was going to see Twisted Sister they were huge at the time. I was pretty blown away by Dokken and Lynch’s guitar playing. I was right up against the stage. I ran out and got Tooth and Nail after that day and was a fan since. I saw them again at Tampa Stadium at Monsters of Rock 1988 after Back for the Attack came out. Then didn’t see them again until 1995 when they got back together for the Dysfunctional album. Very good album imo. That was at small outdoor venue Janus Landing maybe 4,000 people. I was front of stage again. Don looked wasted and was on a stool a lot. lol. Lynch was ripped and on steroids back then.
That Tooth & Nail album was one of the few store-bought cassettes I had back in the day. Cool album! Most of my cassettes were dubs / mix-tapes! 😂
Saw that same tour in Salt Lake City...well most of it. My friends and I lit a joint right as the house lights went down for Twisted Sisted and when everyone rushed the stage, we were left there like sitting ducks and got busted and thrown out😂😂😂
Jeff Pilson sounds like a cool dude. It's great to see and hear his long success in music. Dokken was awesome... and his musicianship in Foreigner is elite. Definitely going to check out The End Machine. Great interview.
Love the interview as always. Good job. Wish Jeff and the guys will release those old days live videos he said he was watchin', whatever the quality 😜 It's a sin we just have Philly and little bit more.
Jeff, you're the dream band member every musician should have, SIr! \m/\m/ Thanks for the great legacy of tunes you've made for us 80's rockers to fall back on in this age of lame mass produced music.
I saw Dokken open for Dio in Anchorage when I was stationed there in 1984. Great show by both bands!
Back for the Attack was a great album front to back all killer no filler!
Yeah I was surprised he thought it could have been even better because that’s their best IMO. George’s guitar sounded freaking amazing & the songs were some of their best.
I saw both of those tours back in the day...Damn...What a great time in music we were lucky enough to witness and be a part of. It really was a way of life...Still is.
Cheers,
J
One thing that seems to get left out or even altered is that it was in the press that Don was breaking up the band right before the Monsters Of Rock tour. They make it sound like it happened on the tour, but I went to one of those shows and I clearly remember reading that he was breaking up the band and thinking how crazy it was that they were about to go on a stadium tour and they were done. And just how insane it was that he couldn't wait until after the tour to announce it. It's no wonder George didn't want to be there. Not only did that kill there vibe, but going on right after Metallica when they were absolutely on fire didn't do Dokken any favors either. But yeah, I'm surprised no one ever mentions that, Don killed the band BEFORE the stadium tour!
Jeff is the coolest guy! He is always so nice.
Would love to hear the Pilson/Goldy songs
Man great interview
Back for the Attack was AWESOME. I mean, I was only like 13 but I remember it being a big technical leap forward from their previous albums. Then Beast from the East came out. Holy cow what an awesome live album. ‘Twas a Beast!
Strong interview, well done. Interesting professional discussion, good audio quality, and nice & compact. Kudos.
Mr. Ron Keel. Thank you, sir. Good to see you in the comments!
Back for the attack was one of the all time best records ever. The guitar tone was just the apex of tone. Georges later stuff was great too, but that tone on BFTA was just other worldly..
Has Jeff ever written a book,I'd love to read it.
That would be amazing
Never heard of The End Machine but I'm going to check them out right now
May 1986 I was 14 years old and saw my first concert at the St.Paul Civic Center. Judas Priest/Dokken. $20 for decent seats. My mind and ears were blown when it was over. The lights came on and you could cut the reefer and marlboro smoke with a knife. So glad I grew up in the decade of metal
Jeff is a straight up professional. Seems like a great dude. Great player and singer.
Excellent interview!!
SHOCKED to hear that 80s metal bands used cocaine. Who knew. 🙄
full in bloom…
Thanks brother for keeping my Bands that I love alive with great interviews
Thank you for listening!
Got to see Sebastian bach, Dokken, and Poison back in '09. Was a great show start to finish 🤘🏼💯🙌🏼
Dude your interviewing technique and skill and questions are fucking awesome! Very well done man
Full In Bloom has to be a CIA asset!
💯🎶🎸
Thank you, Leo! I appreciate you taking the time to listen.
I saw Dio & Dokken in Dallas in 1984 too. The old Reunion Arena. What a great show that was!!
Saw that tour in Madison at the Coliseum.
Interesting to hear projects Jeff Pilson is involved with. I gotta have a look at those.
“We did a lot of cocaine”, I would never expect to hear that from any 80’s rock band. I wonder if there was a constant supply of young women too…..nah.
No. No women. Just concentrated on their music lol.
Where their is coke, their are hot women who live to party 😂
Yep. We called them "bag chasers". @@toddaldworth2272
Hot Purcy! Just a friendly little cat... meow!
Mother and Daughters! 80’s no social media! Too bash guys sexual stamina and then some
Nice shout out to "Wild" Mick Brown!
Back for the attack was a phenomenal album
One of my all-time fav bands, with that 80s lineup
The end machine is what dokken could have been and I absolutely love dokken
My first concert at age 13 at the Cow Palace. I was blow away by Jake. Then I saw them on ultimate sin and came home to find all my guitars and equipment stolen while at that show. I love jakes playing. One of the greatest!
Relevance?
@@whamsie4022TY..... I'm like ...😵💫 "Ohhh kay....So ...WHAT in TH does Ozzy and Jake era HAVE TO DO WITH "DOKKEN".....AT ALL?....😕. 🫨🔫
Loved This Would Love Seeing More Vids/Interviews With More Bands😊❤
Dokken may have been lumped in with other hair/glam metal bands of the time, but their music was always more complex and heavier than say bands like Poison, Motley Crue, Quiet Riot, and Ratt etc, even on Under Lock and Key, with it's commercial appeal, and slick production aimed at radio play, they we're still able to pull off the difficult balancing of growing their fanbase and maintaining their integrity.
Had front row center in 1988 in Dallas, when they opened for Aerosmith. Phenomenal show. MISS THOSE DAYS
AS DO I...Saw'em at Iowa Jam '85&can only imagine how much tix would be today? $15 Advanced $17 Day of Show; Armored Saint, Dokken, Metallica, Ted Nugent&Aerosmith. Saw Metallica week later in Omaha w/Armored Saint for about same $. It was 3rd time seeing both Ted&Aerosmith. What was awesome about Aerosmith during that era was the energy&level of their shows w/o gimmicks. Done w/Mirrors was the next time I saw them after Iowa Jam&arguably one of their best next to Permanent Vacation.
Jeff is so smart and so diplomatic. I wouldn't hold my tongue if somebody asked me about the old days.
Music to my ears. Are you THE Racer X/Badlands Jeff Martin?
@@fullinbloom Not unless Jeff Martin identifies as Hispanic now. I think this guy's name is Jeff Martinaz 😄
@@Steven-v7o I thought it was az as in Arizona, which I believe is where Jeff is from.
I'm just kidding around. Easy mistake. I love your channel. You should have far more subscribers. You have a really distinctive voice which is a good thing 👍@@fullinbloom
Jeff is pretty cool, he also used to sell blow, I used to buy from him lol he lived across the street from me on Poinsettia in Hollywood, good he got sober.
I saw a video were Don said he didn’t do drugs. Then I see an interview of George Lynch talking about them all doing lines off of Freddy’s blades on his glove during the filming of the Dream Warriors music video. What is there to be ashamed about it was the 80’s everyone was doing coke
And the coke was😊 much better
Its called holier than thou and being full of shit
I also remember George saying he was so high during the filming he could barely bust through the thin wall they made for when he starts his solo 😂
Tooth and Nail - Under lock and key - THAT is the Dokken we fell in love with at that time. And MTV was the other part to their success, a lot of bands success of that time. It was visual, they could put out a video that painted the right vibe, right theme - so many vid were dumb as fuck and got weirder as the music video/artistic expression crossed over.
Imagine a world back then with the internet? All we had were press statements, magazine interviews, radio DJ's and of course, with MTV, we got news/rumors? shit about bands - But no matter how bad it was for some people, a lot of it was "What has Ozzy done now?" that took the spotlight, or Motley Crue busting up hotels, drunk, OD, Razzle (rest in peace dear Rocker) ~ but even with that, Don Dokken was heavily rumored, Heavily, to being a real dickhead sob. That was kind of the message I recall was out there, or someone wanted out there. And of course, the split with he and George got real public for the time. Fans didn't give a fuck about that, we wanted more Dokken but it got pissed away, gone forever.
But hey man, the radio only plays a few songs in total, there's no bad shit on their records man, not those 2 albums anyway. But that's how it was then. People came and went like a fucking mini mall. Jeff for example, how many fkn bands are in his credits? I mean, he was everywhere. Like whenever someone needed a bass player, a better bass player it's like someone would say "Hey, What's Pilson doing right now?" ... HAHA!
But like Jeff said - Don on Val's and booze? Jeff and everyone else on the planet in the 80's were lining it up day and night man - they can both point at each other and claim "You're a buzz kill dude" and they're both right - Should've got Don on the train man, might have been different.
But to be real? Lynch Mob release? Fucking badass! and overnight, there's George on MTV slashing it! Hey, same guitar, you know you're listening to Dokken's guitarist. Guitar players all had their own accent and voice through strings - like a fingerprint for a true fan Like yeah man, wish you had worked it out but oh well, we'll take what we can! Rock on! Drawing on memory? Don blamed it all on George wanting the musical direction to go his way, shine on his guitar - Don wanted to elevate to some cerebral awakening stage of enlightenment - fuck if I know, but it didn't fly, Don was the dick in the peanut butter is what we all walked away with, least in our bubble. But like I said, no internet, no real way of knowing, that's what we were fed.
Wasn't there also an age gap with Don? He was kind of long in the tooth I seem to recall - without looking it up, that's what I'm vibing on memory recall - one thing for sure, we're all old as fuck today looking back to those glorious times.
Best rock content out there More of an in depth conversation than by the numbers interview Fantastic
Great Dude!
Jeff is always a great listen he is not about the bullshit and says it like it is. All that and he is an incredible artist!
Jeff’s the man
I thought Don was the Sober one Lol
Saw Dokken with Judas Priest at Cobo Hall in Detroit. Under Lock and Key tour I believe. Priest was on the Turbo tour. Great concert.
That's when I saw them. Good show @ the Norfolk Scope in Va.
Saw DIO in mid 90’s with Jeff on bass. Dude is solid.
That was Dio Strange Highways Tour 1994, Saw that tour twice in Florida. Dio was back playing clubs after years of playing arenas, That show was 🔥 🤘
@@sds4life17 Yep! Saw them at the House of Blues on Sunset.
Good interview..Love Jeff
That was good stuff. I always felt that Jeff, was one of the hardest working musicians out there.
As for George too.
But Jeff just seems to be everywhere. 😎👍✌️
Mr. Scary is my favorite song from Dokken. I liked the Freddy Krueger movies and the Dream Warriors theme also.
Saw Dokken open for Priest in Hollywood, Florida. 1st Row. Great show.
The Great Hollywood Sportatorioum.
Another great interview, love Jeff
Bloom- once again, another Puzzle Piece on a Saturday morning here in Phoenix as I sip my coffee! ☕️
Jeff Rules!
That Cow Palace ticket is priceless. I actually have to move back to the Bay to look after my mom and dad soon. Keep rockin brother🎶🎸🎤
I just finished my blog on 'Shadowlife.' I am 45, so Dokken for me were just about to break up by the time i really discovered them and fell in love with the band. For years, I only had what was written in magizines and older people who had more inside knowledge on what happened. When the band got back together i was in High School and listened to a lot of Pantera, Sepultura, Type O Negative, Rollins Band, Stabbing Westward, White Zombie, Fear Factory, you get the point but I still came back to Dokken.
I always attibuted the issues to George and Don as egos that couldn't communicate to a level where they could hash out their greievences towards one another. I feel like this is still present in 2024. Jeff has always been the senseable one. Mick always seemed like he was just glad to be there and then you have Don and George. As Jeff said, when the band was focused on 'making kickass music and the live performance to go with it," the band was at its best. I would love to sit down with Jeff and talk about some of those records, specifically the heavier direction the band was going with their music from 'Back for the Attack' through 'Dysfunctional' and than, we get to 'Shadowlife.' Then "Erase the Slate.'
Even George was getting heavier as a gututarist. It was there, they could have done some real wild stuff. Going through old video peformances the live shows to me seemed much heavier than the recorded albums did and I always wished the Dokken would have pushed the heavier more metal sound than the arena, popular rock that was being pushed out at the time.
How many bands from that era that had the arena sound could transition into actual heavier metal? A few but not all and certainly not many. I'd put Dokken in there that if they wanted to be heavier/darker band, sonically, they could have pulled it off. Instead, Elektra tries to sell them as a glam band. I know it is retrospectively but I always felt this.
Give me a time machine, the raw recordings. pro-tools, and a pitchshifter and I will give you a Dokken sound that sounds live but in the studio. That is how I always was hoping the sound would evolve and the best we got was a handful of shows over the course of 15 years that showcase these things from the band.
I believe I have all these dates correct....
In Nov 1987, I went to see Aerosmith at the Capital Center near DC. My whole reason for going was Dokken. They hit the stage and were tearing it up. Suddenly, around the second or third song, there was no guitar. I didn't see what happened. They finished the song, and then one of them said something like, "George is on his back. He's had the flu. He's very sick and can't continue." I was so pissed.
Then, in June 1988, I saw the Monsters of Rock tour at RFK Stadium in DC. Dokken was there and kicked ass!!! Great show. All the bands were great.
But the highlight is, in Aug 2001, my band got to open for Lynch Mob at Jaxx in Springfield, VA. What a great night. George and the guys were very cool. After the show, we grabbed some food, chatted a little, and took some photos.
I feel very honored to have been able to have experiences like that.
Lol...I was at that show Capital Center show. My recollection was George was drunk as shit, and he was just leaning up against one of his stacks not really playing by the 2nd or 3rd song, and then their set was over. Given all of the talk from the various members about their drug use, I'm going with my version and not the flu :). Obviously, I have no real proof, but it would be the more rock 'n roll version. \m/
@@madDdog67 I thought the same, which is why I was mad as hell. 😄
What's the name of your band?
@JoeBattle At that time, we were Hyper Chyld. We evolved a few years later and changed it to The Perfect Excuse.
Cool Guy that Jeff Pilson and Rocks hard too! Love Dokken days!
The ONLY concert tickets I ever bought in my teen years was Dokken/Van Halen 1988 Long Beach, Ca. ✨
Jeff Pilson is the absolute BEST 🎶 Rock On! 🤘🎸
I was at the Dio/Dokken show here in Dallas.
I used to sell Jeff some back-up cartridges back in late-90's and early 2000's for his studio. I would touch base with him every couple months and he was a steady customer. Being a huge Dokken fan this was a real treat to have conversations with him plus make a little commission, a win win. He is hands down the nicest gentleman I have ever known from the music business and living and performing in LA for over 20 years, I have met many successful artists from my favorite bands. He is a sweetheart of a guy. So fun to talk to. A real class act.