Danger Danger

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Danger Danger performing at the 2004 Sweden Rock festival.

Danger Danger is a glam metal / rock band formed in 1987 in Queens, New York. Despite enjoying moderate success in the U.S. with their debut album Danger Danger, the band vanished from the radar due to legal problems and changes in its line-up. However, they have remained solid and are still playing and recording albums.

1 Band history
2 Band members
- 2.1 Current members
- 2.2 Former members
3 Trivia
4 Discography

[edit] Band history

Danger Danger was formed in 1987 by bassist Bruno Ravel and drummer Steve West. Mike Pont was the lead singer for a while. After adding keyboardist Kasey Smith, they made an attempt to record a demo, but failed. Shortly after, they recruited a drummer called Ted Poley (who was playing in Prophet as singer). They made another attempt at a demo, and this time it landed them a record deal with Epic Records.

In 1989, Tony Ray (from Saraya) joined briefly as guitarist before returning to his previous band. Andy Timmons replaced him, and the band finally released their debut album that year. The album spawned two hits with "Naughty Naughty" and "Bang Bang", with the former gaining a spot in MTV's Headbanger's Ball. The band went on tour opening for KISS, Alice Cooper, Extreme and Warrant.

After that, the band went on to record their follow-up in the Netherlands, finally releasing Screw It! in 1991. The album spawned two other hits with "Monkey Business" and "I Still Think About You" and again, they went on tour with KISS. During it and due to the growing emphasis on guitars instead of keyboards, Kasey Smith left the band.

In 1993, the band had finished work with their third album titled Cockroach. However, surprisingly, the band fired singer Poley. Subsequent lawsuits from Poley prevented the album from being released. In the meantime, Paul Laine was hired by Ravel and West as the new singer and he re-recorded the vocals for the new album. Still, when they were about to release it, Epic thought it was in their best interest to decide to shelve the record. Shortly after, the band and the label amicably parted ways. Also, frustrated with all this, guitarist Timmons left the band to pursue a solo career.

Ravel and West went on to form their own label, Low Dice Records, and they started working on a new album together with Laine. They finally released Dawn in 1995 which featured a more somber and introspective tone. The album was partly marketed through the band's fan club, newsletter and website. The band recruited bassist Scott Brown to help them, and they went on tour again in the U.S..

The band went back in the studio and released Four the Hard Way in 1998. The album was a return to the melodic rock that had made them famous at first. Former band members, Timmons and Smith, contributed to the album, and the band went back on tour. In 2000, they released The Return of the Great Gildersleeves.

In 2001, the band made a unique move after talks with Epic, releasing Cockroach, which was supposed to be their third album, but couldn't be released for legal issues. The album featured 2 discs with both versions of the album. One with Paul Laine and the other with Ted Poley. The response to the album was positive. They followed it in 2003 with Rare Cuts, which is a collection of unreleased and rare tracks.

In 2004, Paul Laine left the band and original singer Ted Poley was brought back.

In 2005, the band released Live and Nude, which was recorded in 2003 and features former vocalist, Paul Laine.

[edit] Band members

[edit] Current members

Ted Poley - vocals (1987 - 1993, 2004 - present)
Bruno Ravel - bass guitar, guitar (1987 - present)
Steve West - drums (1987 - present)
Rob Marcello - guitar (2003 - present)

[edit] Former members

[edit] Trivia

Al Pitrelli was an early guitarist of Danger Danger, who later went on to various other bands, including Savatage, the supergroup Asia, and Trans-Siberian Orchestra. He played on several songs on Rare Cuts.
Former members, Andy Timmons and Kasey Smith have contributed to several of the songs on further releases.