Kevin DuBrow, the lead singer of Quiet Riot, who died Sunday at age 52, will be remembered as a guy who was in the right place at the right time, with the right song. The place was the Sunset Strip; the time was late summer, 1983; the song was “Cum On Feel the Noize,” a raucous party tune originally recorded by British glam-rockers Slade, which Quiet Riot inflated into the anthem that first took pop-metal to the top of the Billboard charts. Quiet Riot distilled the pop-metal formula, toning down the darkness and nihilism of progenitors like Black Sabbath while preserving the decibel levels, adding poodle hair, spandex, gratuitous guitar histrionics, lots of salaciousness, and, above all, melody. Other, better bands—Mötley Crüe, Def Leppard, Bon Jovi—would ride the tide to superstardom, but Quiet Riot got there first, when “Cum On Feel” propelled the band’s third album, Metal Health, to No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 200, for one week exactly, in November of ‘83.
Revolutions in the past have happened all around the world, but no revolution has succeeded in doing what it promised. It promised equality, without understanding the psychology of human individuality. Each human individual is so unique that to force them to equality is not going to make people happy, but utterly miserable.
I also love the idea of equality, but in a totally different way. My idea of equality is equal opportunity for all to be unequal, equal opportunity for all to be unique and themselves. Certainly they will be different from each other, and a society which does not have variety and differences is a very poor society. Variety brings beauty, richness, color.
But it has not yet dawned on the millions around the world that revolution has not helped, and they still go on thinking in terms of revolution. They have not understood anything from the history of man.
It is said that history repeats itself. I say it is not history that repeats itself; it only seems to repeat itself because man is absolutely unconscious and he goes on doing the same thing again and again without learning anything, without becoming mature, alert, and aware.
When all the revolutions have failed, some new door should be opened. There is no point in again and again changing the powerful into the powerless and the powerless into the powerful; this is a circle that goes on moving.
I don’t preach revolution. I am utterly against revolution. I say unto you that my word for the future, and for those who are intelligent enough in the present, is rebellion.
Joseph R. Flatley, Sr., age 83, a resident of Erie died Sunday February 18, 2007 at Hamot Medical Center. He was born in Erie on June 7, 1923, the son of the late Mayor Thomas W. Flatley and Anna Causgrove Flatley. Joseph was a graduate of Cathedral Prep High School and served with the U.S. Army during WWII. He retired from the Erie School District as a Glazier and was a former member of the Knights of Columbus. Joseph was also a member of the Siebenburger Club and East Erie Turners and was an Associate of the Sisters of St. Joseph. He also belonged to St. Andrew Catholic Church. Besides his parents, he was proceeded in death by a daughter Karen Flatley along with three brothers; Thomas (Todd), Willard (Bud), and John (Jack) Flatley and three sisters; Anne Hansen, Loretta Grumblatt and Helen Schember. Joseph is survived by his wife Rosemary “Pat” Price Flatley along with his seven sons; Joseph Flatley, Jr. and his wife Linda of McKean; Kevin Flatley and his wife Kathy of Findley Lake, N.Y.; Timothy, Patrick and Steve Flatley of Erie; Terry Flatley and his wife Linda of Erie and John Flatley and his wife Gennifer of Erie. Also surviving are six daughters; Rosemary Jackson of Gainesville, Fla.; Kathleen Flatley, Maureen Moose, Jane Letto, Christine Flatley and Ann Metzger and her husband Don, all of Erie. Joseph is further survived by many grandchildren, great-grandchildren, nieces and nephews. Friends are invited to call at the John J. Quinn Funeral Home, West 9th & Liberty St. Tuesday from 7-9 p.m. and Wednesday from 2-4 & 7-9 p.m. and are invited to attend Prayer Services there Thursday at 10:00 a.m. followed by a Mass of Christian Burial at 10:30 a.m. in St. Andrew Catholic Church. Burial will be in Calvary Cemetery. Memorials may be made to Emmaus Soup Kitchen, 218 E. 11th St., Erie, PA 16503 or to St. Andrew’s School Fund.
Published in the Erie Times-News from 2/20/2007 – 2/21/2007.
As we know, Bob Anton Wilson passed on the eleventh. I am glad that before he passed I was able to send him the sixty bucks that I owed him! Also, the last time we spoke, he told me that one thing he had learned as a result of getting old and dealing with the medical problems aging invites — some minor, some not so — is that he is not afraid to die at all, at all. Still, this all seems somewhat ironic coming from a man who was such a vocal fan of life extension and immortality.
Anyways, Bill just sent me this and I thought y’all might be interested:
A Selection of Obscure Robert Anton Wilson Essays: I was prompted by yesterday’s news of the passing of RAW to scan the pieces he wrote for his 1999 column on GettingIt.com, the progenitor of this webzine. It was a casual act, under the assumption that they would be somewhat dated. But as I reread the articles, it became clear that admirers who are unaware of them might in fact find them enjoyable.
Lenny Flatley is not a Wiccan, a Scientologist or a registered Democrat. He will never finish his long promised account of the six months he spent on the Womens PGA Tour (for liability reasons). He is currently listening to the song "Words" by Doves. If you must contact him, he prefers that you do it on myspace.
“To the Sirens first shalt thou come…”
This country will give you a war if you want it, and it will give you all the consumer benefits of a system that creates war, if you want it, while keeping the war itself safely stashed away. And if you’re not satisfied, you can always get a lap dance.
