| Randy Piper | |
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Piper on stage with W.A.S.P. |
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| Background information | |
| Birth name | William Randall Piper |
| Born | April 13, 1953 San Antonio, Texas, United States |
| Genres | Heavy metal |
| Occupations | Guitarist, Songwriter |
| Instruments | Guitar, Backing vocals |
| Years active | 1975–present |
| Associated acts | Sister, Circus Circus, W.A.S.P., Alice Cooper, Animal, Where Angels Suffer |
| Website | http://www.randypiper.net |
Randy Piper (born William Randall Piper in San Antonio, Texas) is an American musician, rock guitarist, songwriter, and singer best known as the co-founder and original guitarist of the heavy metal band, W.A.S.P.
Previously, as members of Sister and Circus Circus, Piper and Blackie Lawless pioneered the outrageous stage spectaculars and notorious off-stage antics that later L.A. bands would emulate to multi-platinum success.
But it was the transition into W.A.S.P. marked the evolution of the distinctive sound, for which they are now famous. Touring worldwide, W.A.S.P. performed hits such as "I Wanna Be Somebody" and "L.O.V.E. Machine" from their self-titled W.A.S.P. (album), following with "Wild Child" and "Blind in Texas" from the album The Last Command.
Randy Piper's Animal, Kings Horses, and the Randy Piper Group are some more of Piper's original bands. In all, he has recorded 5 studio albums, countless singles, and appears in 7 music videos and 2 movies. His work was awarded 9 gold records in 5 countries.
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Piper comes from a family that loves music. He is the only grandson of Minnie Stevens Piper, who created the Minnie Stevens Piper Foundation in 1950, a non-profit corporation to support educational opportunities for financially limited students His sister even named her daughter "Presley" in honor of Elvis Presley. That special love for Elvis Presley played pivotal role in Piper's childhood. Not only did he grow up listening to the records, anticipating each new release, and watching every movie Presley was in, Piper was capitivated by Presley's glamorous life. Inspired by his hero, Piper began playing acoustic guitar by age 10.
While still in high school, Piper opened a music store in Long Beach, California. “Wheatstone Bridge” wasn't just a discount record store, it was an experience. The vibe was relaxed and artistic, with psychedelic tapestries covering the walls and ceilings - incense burning - and Piper himself spinning records. Jimi Hendrix, The Beatles, Black Sabbath, Uriah Heep, ZZ Top, Grand Funk Railroad, The Doors, Leslie West Mountain, Fog Hat, Ten Years After, The Who, Bob Dylan, Canned Heat, Jefferson Airplane, Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young, James Taylor, America, Robin Trower, Creedence Clearwater Revival and Johnny Winter were all featured in the store. Subsequently, Piper attended many their live concerts.
By 1978, Piper took his love of music a step further, with his new rehearsal and recording space, Magnum Opus Studios, in Buena Park, California. "Magnum Opus" was an industrial warehouse converted into rehearsal rooms, recording studios, and video sets. A special permit allowed his business to operate from 6:00 PM through 6:00 AM. For two and half years, George Lynch and Mick Brown, with their band Exciter, rehearsed there. Eventually, Lynch and Brown joined Don Dokken and went on to record their first Dokken album, Breaking the Chains (Dokken album) in Germany.
In 1978, Piper met Blackie Lawless at the Starwood Night Club in Hollywood, California. A collaboration was born, as they began recording many songs on a Teac 3340 reel to reel at Piper's Magnum Opus Studio. When Lawless brought in Joey Palemo and Jimi Image, the band Sister was reborn. The new line-up included Blackie Lawless on lead vocals and guitar, Randy Piper on guitar and vocals, Joey Palemo on bass, and Jimi Image on drums.
During the days of Sister, inspiration struck in the form of the circus. After attending several performances by Ringling Brothers and Barnum and Bailey, Lawless wanted to change the name of the band to Circus Circus. Along with the new name came new branding, as they moved away from pentagrams and occult symbols towards a more colorful, theatrical appearance. Stage shows now included elaborate, circus-themed sets, with band members jumping off elephant stands and Lawless' antics, such as knife-throwing and setting himself on fire. The first videos for Circus Circus were produced at Piper's Magnum Opus Studio.
W.A.S.P. took L.A. by swarm. They easily set and broke attendance records at the iconic Troubadour club. They were gaining an increasingly devoted fan base as they added more outrageous stunts to the live shows.
Not only musical innovators, W.A.S.P. became well-known for their extravagant and scandalous stage performances. Drawing on Piper's and Lawless' theatrical backgrounds, plus their flair for the shocking, the band incorporated burning signs, mic stands made out of huge chains, and girls dancing in cages. One of the most infamous stage sets featured the illusion of live rats being fed directly into a meat grinder. However, instead of fresh rat meat, band members tossed raw hamburger and chicken livers out to the audience. Although animal rights groups quickly caught wind and objected, the controversy only served to make W.A.S.P. even more popular.
W.A.S.P.'s first single was Animal (Fuck Like A Beast). It was considered so offensive that the band's record label, Capitol, did not want to release it. Instead, the band released it on an independent label, Music for the Nations, in Belgium. The single was then imported to England, where it spent 110 weeks on the charts.
On August 17, 1984, "W.A.S.P." - the self-titled first album - shipped gold right off the press. "W.A.S.P." peaked at Number 74 on Billboard's top 200 album chart in 1984, spending 31 weeks on the charts.
November 9, 1985 saw the release of "The Last Command (album)" on Capitol Records, W.A.S.P.'s second album, which again featured guitarist Randy Piper. "The Last Command" peaked at Number 47 on Billboard's Top 200 album chart, where it stayed 23 weeks.
W.A.S.P.'s second gold-certified release in a row sold over a million copies, making them one of the most prominent metal bands of the mid-80s. They toured relentlessly with other popular bands such as Kiss (band), Iron Maiden, and Black Sabbath. Two singles in particular were in demand as part of MTVs heavy metal rotation - the party anthem "Blind in Texas," as well as "Wild Child," - the story of a free-spirited Harley rider.
In 1988, the CD reissue almost doubled the original length of the album. It featured a cover of "Mississippi Queen," (the early 70's Mountain hit), the original B side "Savage" and 5 songs recorded live at the Lyceum Theatre (Sheffield) in October 1984, including "On Your Knees," "Hellion," "Love Machine," "Animal," and "I Wanna Be Somebody."
Controversy continued to follow the band, actually contributing to their success. W.A.S.P. drew the attention of the Parents Music Resource Center (PMRC) - an organization opposed lyrics considered sexually explicit or violent. W.A.S.P. was the very first band to have an explicit lyrics advisory sticker, a fact noted by the national press, including Rolling Stone and People (magazine). However, publicity from opposition groups ultimately helped boost album sales.
Eventually, Piper was ready to try some new things musically, and in 1988, he left W.A.S.P. Even though the commercial response declined after his departure, records sales have continued for over 25 years.
In fact, "I Wanna Be Somebody" went on to be ranked number 84 on VH1s list of Top 100 Hard Rock Songs.
with W.A.S.P.
with Randy Piper's Animal
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