Memories of Razzle & Personal Stories

These are a few of the emails I've received about Razzle and Hanoi Rocks.
If you have something you'd like to share please E-mail me.
(All writings used with permission).

Kev's Memories of His Friendship With Razzle
Scott's Memories of Meeting Hanoi During Their Last US Tour
Patricia Ingram's Experience at the Razzle Tribute Gig (London, 9th Dec 2000)
Razzle Interviews Page

From Kev:
My brother (Ray Zell) told me about your Razzle website today so I had to have a look. The first picture I saw was Raz in his white suit, it reminded me of the first time I saw him in it (with frilly shirt and small black bowtie) at the Clarendon Hammersmith. He walked up to me and said "here kev who do I look like?" I looked at him for a second and said "Colonel Saunders?" NO...JAMES BOND YOU IDIOT! was his reply. Just last week I was looking thru some old paperwork and come across my Hanoi Rocks christmas card. Happy xmas wooden top- love Razzle its signed. A nickname given to me by Raz and used by Hanoi and all friends at the time. Also only yesterday I was looking for something and found whats left of a broken watch (which turns into a F 11 fighter jet) that he got me first time he went to Japan. (Ray got one with a sports car. In the months leading up to him joining Hanoi my mum (Mrs M Raz called her) had kicked me out of home just before leaving for a gig, when I told him that night he said "you can come and stay with me" problem was he had aready taken in his ex-girlfriend, her new girlfriend and their dog 'boot' (who had a blue belly) so all of us lived in this one (biggish) room for the next few months. The first night there very drunk at 2 in the morning we made some toast and lent backwards out of his window chucking bits into the window of the flat upstairs. Another night we but a white sheet around him and put a plastic skull with light-up eyes on his head and scared the shit out of the girl down-stairs! And one last one just to sum-up Raz's character 'Marmalade Atkins' (remember her?) lived across the road with her parents at the time.her dad was always coming over in his dressing gown to tell us (the whole house) to keep the noise down' well this night loads of us had been to the pub' and where very drunk' some one started a water fight which spilled out on to the street (hay .. it was summer!) so everyone's running up and down the street screaming and shouting' Mr Atkins comes over and looking straight at Raz (the ringleader) has this massive go at him "my god when are you lot gonna grow up I'm sick and tired of coming over here to tell you lot to shut up, I never get any sleep since you moved in...blah...blah..." this guy is red in the face at the end of rope.and what's Raz's reply? JUST GRAB A SQUEEZIE BOTTLE AND JOIN IN!. He was great fun and a nice guy. My mum would sit and have a cup tea with him and my sister was happy to see him wearing the studded belt she gave him when Hanoi did The Tube on Channel 4 .My ex-girlfriend was a big Hanoi fan and never got to meet him but at least I could tell her some stories' the next best thing I guess.
I liked your website'it made me remember what a good time I had back then thanks.
KEV(kk)
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From Scott: http://www.mp3.com/deedeesweet
I have been thinking about this since I found your site this morning. So I had to get it out of my head.
Well let's see. it was in November 29, 1984 if my remember correctly. I was living in Syracuse, New York at the time. I had just missed Hanoi Rocks playing in NYC and I was very bummed since they were by far and away my favourite band. I was literally sitting in my apartment sulking when I heard an ad on the radio saying Hanoi was playing a small club in Syracuse called USA Sams. Let me tell you no one cool played Syracuse it was like living in the armpit of the universe. I called the club several times because I thought I was hearing things. In 2 days I was going to see Hanoi, I was on another planet. I know this sounds retarded but they were such a huge influence to me it wasn't even funny.
Well I got to the show early hoping to meet Hanoi but they weren't there yet. So I am just hanging out with some friends I dragged with me and all of a sudden they pop in and start doing some sound checks (yes!!) after which everybody disappeared but Razzle. So I went over and started talking to him, I was flipping out, I just loved Hanoi and could not believe I was getting to see them in this small club, much less getting to talk to Razzle. He ate it up. He was as cool as anyone could ever imagine. He knew how it felt, he' d been in my shoes and was just loving life playing in Hanoi. He wanted to be a Rock Star that was all, it wasn't money or fame really. It was just to be like the guys he idolised. Well after a few minutes he asked what song I wanted them to do. The first few I picked were already on the list so I picked "Ice Cream Summer" but they didn't have that rehearsed at all, so I picked "Lightning Bar Blues". Razzle got this huge fucking grin on his face. At that point he figured I wasn't just blowing smoke up his ass. He said he loved doing that song and he'd tell them to put it on the list. Well I'm guessing there were about 40 -50 people there that night so you got to get as close as you wanted. I was right smack in front of Andy the whole night. They were just smoking, absolutely the greatest band I ever saw live to this day. (Guns N Roses on the first tour and Iggy with Andy were the next closest) Up comes "Lightning Bar Blues" and Razzle stands up and says this one is for me, so Michael sticks the microphone in my face and god knows what I said I was so wired. Well that pretty much made my life at the time you know. So they go through the set and Mike steps off the riser and breaks his ankle and they finish up a few songs later. Mike can't hardly stand and the pseudo-punks are bitchin' because they didn't get 4 encores, assholes huh? Well Yaffa and Mike went to the hospital after a little while but after the show Razzle came right over to ask what I thought. Like I could hardly talk. He talked to me for quite a while. He told me how great things were going for Hanoi, they were selling way more than Epic expected and they were working their way out to LA when the big push was supposed to start. They were going to be huge stars everybody knew it! He was just loving it I can't tell you how full of enthusiasm he was. He brought Nasty and Andy over and introduced me to them. They were all kind of blown away that I knew so much about Hanoi, I was so into it, they didn't think anyone in the US knew who they were. Andy was out of his mind but he was so cool. We talked about Kiss and Alice Cooper and his nose ring. In 1984 NOBODY had a fucking nose ring, he was like an alien from another planet. What a blast. Nasty just came over and hung out. He was cracking up he said the girls that were there were cows and most of the other people there didn't care about Hanoi. So it turned out to be my lucky day cause we just were hanging out drinking and talking about Hanoi Rocks, Sweden and Rock N' Roll. They signed a few things for me before they split and Razzle came over and hugged me. Said I'd made the show for him and I could find him at any show they ever did and he'd hook me up.
Well it literally took until the accident till I came down. I will never forget walking in to my shitty basement apartment on Dec.10, 1984 at about 5PM. One of my roommates had MTV on and they broke into the news and all I remember was seeing Razzle's face, COOL! I'm thinking he made it, he's on MTV, look out now man once they hit MTV the shit was gonna hit the fan. They had "Up Around The Bend" getting some airtime but now they were a news item! All I was thinking was he must be bouncing around whatever room he's in right now after all the stuff he was telling me. I finally heard what they were saying. I really had no idea what was going on. I am not kidding I thought I would wake up and find out it was a dream. I think I stayed drunk for quite a few days after that trying imagine that it didn't happen. I was crushed. In a week and a half I had such a wild swing of emotions, it was a pretty weird time in my life to start with so that made it even weirder. You pretty much knew Hanoi was finished right then and there you know, if you had met him you just knew no one in the world could have replaced him. AC/DC had replaced Bon and it worked but you know this was just different for some reason. Maybe because of how it happened, I don't know. I have since met Michael and Sam and they both said they felt the same way, they had tried to go on but it just wasn't going to happen. Maybe if they had taken sometime off they could have figured a way to do it but Andy was just not going to stop from what I understand and they just couldn't make it happen.
Thanks for keeping Razzle's memory alive !!!!!!! Scott
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Patricia Ingram's Experience at the Razzle Tribute Gig
HANOI ROCKS IS DEAD - LONG LIVE HANOI ROCKS
Zai, my daughter, and I spent a lot of money to get to the Mad Juana gig in London. It was billed as a memorial concert for Razzle who was my son. I intended the outing as a completion to all the work I had done on reclaiming my right to be his mother and dealing with the trauma of losing Razzle not once, but twice. I had arranged to meet Sam Yaffa there, and Xan who wrote his beautiful memorial web site. The only musical preparation I had was watching a compilation video which Jani in Finland made for me (thanks Jani), and listening to a compilation tape by Xan as well as the recorded tape ironically named 'Dead by Christmas'. My first reaction to this - acquired by Zai in the early nineties - was "what a bloody row". The compilation tape was much easier to listen to and the video skilfully charted their passage from raw punk to competent rock and rollers. I did some other preparation too. I had no idea what reception I would get. I had no intention of being a 'mourner', rather a celebrant, and just wanted to meet some of my son's old buddies and rap about what he was like, etcetera. But I also realised there was a possibility I would run into some flak. Razzle had been dead a long time.
After spending three and a half hours at Victoria coach station, waiting to meet Zai, I was pretty pissed. I retired to a tapas bar where a compadre encouraged me to sample my favourite tipple, red wine and brandy. Then followed an expensive taxi ride to the place we were staying in Maida Vale where we spent time having a cuppa and joint with old friends. Realising how late is was getting, we rushed about putting on our glad rags and ordering a cab back to the West End. It was pouring and we finally found Borderline at 9.30, soaking wet and very nervous. Fortunately Barry, the promoter of the gig, had put us on his guest list so we got in fairly easily and headed down the stairs. My first glimpse of Sami. I couldn't believe he looked so young. Obviously he kept to the right mixture. We pushed over to the bar where we could get a drink and a better view. Sami's group, 'Mad Juana', were terrific. It was no good regretting not getting there for the beginning. But I did. The band was loud, competent and - FUN. They passed my test with flying colours - YOU COULD DANCE TO THEM. I didn't of course, too shy, but thought they were terrific. After playing two slower, probably older, numbers, in memory of 'old big nose' Sami gave the stage over to another band.
This band was a different kettle of fish, much more raucous and unambitious. Probably what some people class as real rock and roll, but being an old friend of Keith Moon, Keith Richards and the Jagger Brothers I could only see punk beginnings. Seeing Sami at the bar I willingly left listening to them to go and introduce myself. I gave him the cuddle I had promised I would and introduced Zai. He was nice. Sami Yaffa, you have my vote. We promised to hang around and talk later on.
Zai then suggested that the buffoon on stage must be Andy McCoy so I suggested we went back to listen. I must admit I am prejudiced because he was so rude to me after the gig, but suffice it to say I think he should start wearing a new hat. What was left of his brains could probably have been served on toast. The band didn't 'gel'. It was just another noise, which any idiot can appreciate when their cups are overflowing, i.e. too pissed to stand, but to be fair to Andy there were moments of exceptional guitar brilliance.
Andy this is for you:- Razzle's great-grandad was a real Romany, not someone who calls himself 'gypsy' because he has needs attention. You should have talked to me. You would have learned a thing or two.
We hung around after and spoke to a couple of genuine folk who had known Razz early on. If you're out there Matt or Razz's old girlfriend, or Terry, ex-Clash (loved them, played them a lot), get in touch. Mia casa es su casa. Thanks for speaking to me. And London Waif - I missed you. So sorry. Please mail me again as I have lost my E-mail address book. No-one there knew what I was going through but at least I did it.
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