Friday, November 3, 2017

GROWING UP GREEN.....THE MAKING OF A METAL MOMMA!!

In 1983, my brother bought a club in Phoenix, called the Bootleggers. It was a billard's bar and full of super cool rednecks.  As time went by, we changed it into a Metal club and hosted bands like Flotsam and Jetsam and Poison.  Rob Halford discovered us one day and was a regular, even singing Grinder and Breaking the Law, on stage, with local bands.








I was pregnant with Roxanne and Richie during these years.  I would actually go to the hospital, give birth, and go straight to the club after being released!  I had a bassinet in the office and eventually, a baby walker in the club. Rob Halford even came in on the day I brought Richie for the hospital!  He told me he had never seen so young a child and asked  if he could take a peak at Richie.  I took him in the office and he got on his knee and kissed Richie's tiny hand.  The famous Rob Halford Kiss of Metal!!   It was always normal to come in the Bootlegger's and see me cooking and slinging beers to customers, as the kids walked underfoot!






After the city stole our club and my nervous breakdown was swept away, I gave birth to Jason.  He was named after Jason Christopher Newsted, who had just gone from the mighty Flots into the even mightier, Metallica.  He was a close friend of the family and even visited us when Jason was born.  I lived in a tiny, tucked off to the side home, and was trying to rebuild after the club swipe.  It really uplifted us when he and his then wife, Judy, came to visit.  The many "friends" we had all disappeared for the next bar!






During this time I picked up Sacred Reich and began my venture into band management.  Sacred started in The Bootlegger's and I was super close to Jason Rainey.  I have known him since he was 15.  He had the best fake ID i had ever seen.

Being a rare woman in Metal apparently was big news. Especially one with 5 kids!!  I won the Phoenix New Times Best Maternal Instincts, and did my first photo shoot ever at the Sacred jumped, holding Jason.  I dressed him in Christina's original Freakie's cereal shirt.  It was about this time that a richass label owner asked about buying the rights to my life.  I laughed and replied "I haven't done anything yet!!"  If he only knew the journey I would make!

Class dismissed.........