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EP: Okay, can you tell me a little bit about, like, each of the members’ backgrounds…..or whatever you want to tell me?

JJ: Not really, I don’t know them all that well.

EP: Oh, really?

JJ: Yeah, I mean I had a guy in the band, I didn’t realize he was a two time felon, couldn’t leave the state. But, so now we went back down to three piece. Everyone seems okay. There’s a Norwegian guy on drums who is here, you know, going to school and playing in rock bands. That’s Bard, on the drums. Bard’s from Norway, he’s really cool, I mean just a super hard working guy, you know, a different breed than most American musicians. He’s always on time, always looks good, always works hard. And, our bass player Jackie, he’s kind of the same way. His dad was in a famous band from the 60s that, like, opened up for the Byrds at The Whiskey and all that, so he’s a total California boy, born and raised. He’s got a good outlook, you know, I would call him a little bit of a modern hippie. All of us are, a little bit, you know. But, we wash our feet…

EP: [laugh]

JJ: And, we eat meat. Not your typical hippies, but we’re just about spreading a positive message, you know. No one is hooked on any illegal drugs, just strictly legal pharmaceuticals for whatever may be ailing them, whether is ADD, PDP or whatever it is that everyone seems to have these days. They all got it. Me, I like to have good days and bad days. I like to, you know, if I’m in a bad mood, I’m in a bad mood. I don’t need to take a pill, it’ll pass and then you get in a good mood, and that’s how you know you feel good. But, everyone I deal with these days seems to be on some kind of mood suppressants of some sort, so they’re just, you know, on auto-pilot.

EP: Right.

JJ: So, I seem like the one who’s got issues. [laughing] You know what I mean?

EP: Yeah, I do [laughing]

JJ: Everyone’s looking at me, like, “What? Why are you getting excited?” Or, “Why are you not in a great mood?” It’s, like, well ’cause I’m au naturale, man. Life is a roller coaster. You’re up some days, you’re down. But, the guys are cool, I mean, younger than I am. But, what can I say? They show up on time. That eliminates them from being what 90% of what most musicians, uh, they don’t have problems with their girlfriends. So, there you go, a rare breed. They both drive muscle cars. They’re into Mustangs, and they both have brand new Mustang muscle cars. So, they’re Ford and I’m Chevy, ’cause I’m El Camino.

EP: Nice. Okay…

JJ: This might mean something to some fans out there, ’cause I know when I listen to people talk in interviews I want to know, like, what are they driving, you know? It better not be from fuckin’ Japan. That’s for goddam sure, and it better not be from Mexico or anywhere else. It better be an American muscle car, ’cause rock ’n’ roll is an American sport.

EP: I’ve always driven American cars myself.

JJ: Yes, so there you go. It’s weird if you would play rock ’n’ roll, which is American music, and then you would drive a foreign car. I don’t understand that mentality, then again most people don’t understand me. There you go.

EP: Okay, so who does the songwriting for the band then?

JJ: Um, traditionally I’ve been the main songwriter, you know, I’ve been the songwriter in most of the bands I’ve been with. Like, I came up kind of with Kory Clarke from Warrior Soul fame, and we had a band called Space Age Playboys. We co-wrote that record together, and that band, you know, did it’s thing. It’s kind of like, careful what you wish for. I always wanted to be in a band like the Sex Pistols and I got exactly that, one great record, one disastrous foreign tour that ended in disaster for the band. But, you know, in certain circles the Space Age Playboys is still kind of legendary. I still get comments from people who saw us ten years ago who think it’s the best show they ever saw. So, it was a good starting point. I’ve written five albums worth of material now with this band, Tattooed Millionaires. And, I’ve just started on this most recent record, we finally have the first band collaboration, the first song we wrote as a band. I’m excited about that. I mean, I’ve always been looking for another great songwriting partner. But, you know, I mean it’s got to be more than just like here’s three chords. If I want to deal with a songwriting partner then I want someone who comes to me with half a song, not just a riff or an idea, but something concrete. So, my expectations working with people are a little bit high, and I haven’t really found anyone until recently. But, it’s nice to…you know, people in your band gotta really want to be part of it, you know. Everyone in the band, everyone has their own motivation for being in the band. Not many people really want to be the songwriter, or they do only because they feel like they’re gonna get ripped off if they’re not. But, most guys want to get laid, and that’s cool, or they want to travel, and I love traveling. I love getting laid and I love traveling, so I can’t fault guys for being in the band for just that reason. Or, they want to be adored or looked up to or admired. In today’s environment, who knows? They walk into a store and they buy their personality off a shelf now, so they reach for the top. I could have been a doctor or lawyer in the time and money I’ve put into being in a band. I feel like it’s been my calling my whole life. My dad set up the stage for Hendrix at Watkin’s Glen, and Eddie Money was my babysitter and took me to the Bronx Zoo and left me there. You know, I kind of grew up around rock ‘n’ roll. I saw Zeppelin in ‘74 at age six and just remember a lot of pot smoking, a constant flow of joints being passed by my face. I couldn’t see the band at all. Everyone was standing on the edge of their seats, until my friend put me on his shoulders, then I got my first glimpse of rock ‘n’ roll. So, I’m kind of a older guy, always play with younger guys ‘cause I haven’t grown up and I like the energy and excitement. It’s funny, because I’ve connected with all my old friends on Facebook and they’re all great. They’re so excited to see I’m in this band and still going strong. But, at the same point it’s a little like, oh my God, why is everyone 40 pounds overweight, bald, and wearing khakis. What the hell happened to everyone. It’s like a game of dodge ball, you know, like I’m a bit of the last survivor but I want to win it for my team.

EP: [laughing] Yeah, okay, well I’m older, too. And, I’m never gonna give up this stuff.

JJ: Cool! Well, getting back to the point, I’m writing now with the new guys in the band and after, well this is our third record, and we have, like, a double record of unreleased and B sides and stuff like that. But, after 50 songs it’s finally nice to be writing with some people, so I’m excited. I think people are gonna kind of feel that, too, in the music, that it’s a little more than just Johnny now. It’s got a band behind it.

EP: Okay, cool. Where do you get the inspiration for your lyrics?

JJ: God, I guess from the life I’ve led and what’s going on. I stay current with what’s going on with the political scene and the social scene. You know, sometimes on first glance the lyrics can seem kind of stupid and childish, but there’s sexual innuendo and hidden things all over in the music. You know, you don’t have to look far. I mean, you look to Washington, and people are like, “Oh, politics are boring!” It’s like, boring? These guys are banging kids on their breaks! They’re trading kids, they’re pushing buttons and killing a thousand people. I mean, it’s pretty dramatic stuff, what goes on in politics. So, I try to keep it more exciting and just put that rock ‘n’ roll face on it. But, there are no more evil, corrupt people than politicians.

EP: Absolutely!

JJ: The worst of the worst. And, I guess occasionally the best of the best, so when someone comes through in politics and they seem like they care, they really stand out. You know, Martin Luther King, Jr. has been an inspiration. His speech on Vietnam, you could substitute the word Iraq for Vietnam and it would sound like it was written today. You know, people that have drawn the lines that connect the dots. John Lennon, Martin Luther King, even Ghandi. People that go out on a limb for a cause, those are my big inspirations. You know, the little problems that people face every day, they seem small compared to the bigger picture of what’s going on.

EP: Yeah, I’m with you on that, absolutely.

JJ: And, people that piss me off, too, are an inspiration, I guess more so than they should be. I should be able to write happier songs from all the great people I’ve met and all that, but I tend to, kind of like, take a stab at the people that piss me off.

EP: It might be a little bit cathartic that way.

JJ: Yeah, I like to make fun of people without them knowing it, in my music. You know, I think music, rock ‘n’ roll, is meant to take the piss out of it. It’s not supposed to be so serious. Although, I’ve always said, “Yeah, I hate those bands that talk about, ‘Oh, the music’s important. It’s the music. It’s the music.’” I never thought it was the music, to me it’s the message. I don’t really give a shit about the music. When people are like, “Hey, Johnny, have you heard about this band?” or, “Have you checked this band out?” I’m like, “Well, what are they about?” And, if people can’t tell me what they’re about, then I don’t think the band is really doing what it’s supposed to do. You ask people what Tattooed Millionaires are about and they’ll say, “Freedom,” or, “A good time,” or something. That’s important to me that a band has something that they’re aiming for.

EP: Okay. Who are your main musical influences?

JJ: Oh, God, it changes every day, but I always made a habit of whatever band I liked to find out what they were listening to and go listen to that, and find out what they were listening to. So, that journey took me all the way to the first song ever to have the words “rock and roll” in it. It’s a song from 1922 by a black blues singer. Oh, I forget her name….

EP: I forget, too, and I know what you’re talking about.

JJ: It was called, “My Daddy Rocks Me….” something like that. “My Daddy Rocks Me…” oh, what the hell is it. Well, anyway, it was an interesting journey. I like Cheap Trick, I like the stuff from the 70s, the garage rock of the 60s. It’s too hard to single out one band, ’cause I really never got too hooked on one band. I mean I was into KISS, then when everyone got hooked on KISS I moved on to The Ramones. Then when everyone got into The Ramones, I moved on to other things. You know, I made it a point to go and take the train into New York City to get Guns N’ Roses record on the day it came out because they said the cover was gonna change, and a year and a half later, after telling everyone, “Come on, man, give this band a chance,” all of a sudden they’re the biggest thing and I won’t have nothing to do with them, still don’t. That’s what I can understand about fans. You know, it’s like, you’re very excited when on a social networking site will get hit up by someone who discovered the band for the first time, and it’s hitting home. They’re like, “Oh my God, this is great.” It’s like, hold onto that, man, because that doesn’t last forever. It’s the magical moment when the band is just yours, and a lot of people don’t know about it. You can have your little time to get to know it without everyone telling you in the world about what you should think or what your should feel about it. So, I mean, what did Guns N’ Roses become? In the beginning it was a natural progression of people who were pissed off that Vince Neil killed Razzle and destroyed Hanoi Rocks, that they would gravitate to something like Guns N’ Roses. None of us were gonna buy another Motley Crue fuckin’ record and Hanoi Rocks was done. So, you know, Guns N’ Roses was perfectly marketed at that time to come in and take those fans. I mean, as soon as they realized that Axl wasn’t Mike Monroe, the magic was gone. But, it took a little while. Everyone fell for the con that they put out their first record on their own label, they didn’t, that was a scam. You know, it’s weird, the music industry to me, I think, is just a horrible business, you know. My wife wonders how I can put up with it. It’s just back-stabbing money grabbers wherever you go. Look at the state of music today. It’s like, kids still living at home with their moms, touring in their uncles’ vans are getting signed to record labels and being held up as something to admire or whatever. If Led Zeppelin was broadcasting web things from their parents house and touring in a crappy van, would anyone fuckin’ care about ‘em. I mean, the bar on rock ‘n’ roll has been lowered to such a point that its like, anyone is a rock star now. I always said, “Everyone is a haircut away from being a rock star.” I said that when MySpace first came out, and it’s fuckin’ true. I know these guys and they’re 16 or 18 years old and got full sleeve tattoos, and tattoos on their neck, and they just bought it right off a shelf, man. You know, when I was getting tattooed the only guys who had sleeves were guys who came out of prison or Hell’s Angels, and when you went to get a tattoo you didn’t bring a drawing and work with the artist on your thing, you picked out number 13 off the wall with the skull. It was, I want the number 13 skull with the Mohawk off number 16, and some big fat biker dude named Mike fuckin’ grabbed your arm and laid into ya. The whole culture of it is amazing, to see what it’s become. But, you know, like a Kat Von D who becomes a celebrity for tattooing and, you know, the guys who tattooed me tattooed Ozzy, they tattooed Motley Crue, and they tattooed Cher on her ass, but they’re not famous, they’re not celebrities. They’re just guys, you know, hard working guys. This cult of personality thing recently, that’s come to light in the last ten years at least, is a little bit of a downer for those that I know that have worked really hard and strived to be their own people. You see a whole generation of others just not being all that creative and jumping on the bandwagon. You know, kids that shop at Hot Topic, that’s not punk rock. Right now punk rock would be just wearing a lamp shade around your waist. These things start off as fashion. Like the goth thing. How did goth get so big now? I was a goth in the middle 80s in New York, and goth was The Dead Boys and Lords of the New Church, and then he died and it kind of died out, but the fashion didn’t. You know, punk was a term coined by Legs McNeil to describe The Ramones, and he got it from William Burroughs who used it as the term for guys who did tricks on the corners for money, male prostitutes. But, now you say punk to people and you get a different answer from everyone. To me, it’s The Ramones and it’s Blondie, and it’s the CBGB scene of the early 70s. To other people it’s The Exploited, GBH, and to other people it’s The Offspring, and to other people it’s Blink 182, you know. But, what is punk? It’s all just fashion now. Rock and roll is fashion. Punk is fashion. Goth is fashion. It’s not the music anymore. It’s gone way beyond that to just be a cultural and fashion term. It has nothing to do with the music. Being in a punk band doesn’t say anything about you other than you fuckin’ don’t know what the fuck to call yourself. And, I’m standing up for rock ‘n’ roll because I don’t want rock ‘n’ roll….you know everyone….and then this whole rock star thing. Everyone’s a rock star. Rock star! Rock star! Rock star! It’s like, come on, man, people have laid their whole lives on the line, man. They’ve taken bullets through the head to be a rock star, to stand up for what they believe in, you know, to make music that matters, to think, to try to do something to wake people up. I think that’s what it’s about. It’s all about waking people up. Now we live in an age when kids aren’t even having sex anymore, and they frown on weed, but they’re popping their pills everyday, you know. Their parents got ‘em hooked on Ritalin and whatever, ‘cause they’re hyperactive. If they’re hyperactive let ‘em run around, you know. How can you not be ADD [Attention Deficit Disorder] in a world like this where you’re bombarded from ten thousand different angles with a million different images on what you should be doing, and should be thinking, and should be wearing. Of course you’re going to be distracted and have a hard time focusing. The human race isn’t the problem, it’s the people that are preying on us from the top.

EP: Yep.

JJ: Alright, I went off on a tangent.

EP: That’s no problem. That fine. We kind of touched on this earlier, that you’ve got the new album coming out April 20th, right?

JJ: 420!

EP: Okay, and that’s your third album. And, you said that the songwriting was more of a collaboration on this. Can you tell me more about the album and the songs?

JJ: Sure. Let’s see, the record is called, “The Power of Rock and Roll Can Change the World,” and the title is meant to get people thinking and hopefully inspire them to make the changes they need to make. A lot of people feel that music doesn’t change the world, it’s people, and of course it’s people that have to put things in motion to change anything, but the title is meant to just get people to think, because we heard a lot in the election with Obama and all these people about change, and there is a lot of talk about change in every election. I think a lot of people live a life like in “Groundhog Day” where they wake up and it’s like, you know, it’s like the same day all over again. It’s a day of programming to be back where they were in the beginning. You know, every four years it’s “change”. You can guarantee, every four years in the presidential election, there’ll be half the people are pissed off and want change, change and hope. Those are two words I think should be eliminated from the English language, but I use the word change because it’s the catch word, but be careful what kind of change you hope for. Just to have things change for the sake of it doesn’t necessarily mean things are gonna be great. The record….the influences of L.A. are coming more into the record. As far as I’m concerned, L.A. is 1969 and Iggy and The Stooges are making waves and the Motown sound, and everyone’s dancing in the streets. I mean, that’s my L.A., Helter Skelter. You know, Robert Kennedy was assassinated not far from my house. I’m blocks away from where some of the greatest music of all time was recorded. You know, that had a great influence on me. I live on Santa Monica Boulevard, which is Route 66, America’s longest road. But, just blocks from me is the site of the old Gold Star Recording Studio, on the corner of Santa Monica and Vine, a few blocks from me, where some of the greatest music of all time was recorded. It’s nothing but a strip mall now, with a Philly Cheesesteak place, and a Western Dental and a head shop. But, at one time on that corner “La Bamba” was recorded; “C’mon Everybody” from Eddie Cochran; Phil Spector and his Wall of Sound was created there; all the girl groups that he did, “My Boyfriend’s Back” and The Shondells. Um, who else? The Runaways did their record there, the first all-girl rock band; The Beach Boys “Good Vibrations”; I could go on and on; The Who “Magic Bus”, you know. This is just blocks away from my house. I go there and I stand in this parking lot, you know, and take a hit out of my pipe, and I just like, wow, I can’t believe this is just a parking lot. The problem with L.A. is they don’t value their history. In any other city in the country they wouldn’t have allowed that recording studio to be torn down. It would be a shrine, and it should be, but it’s gone. I live in a loft with a custom studio built in it that was built by a kind of bachelor playboy guy who built my building, and he built the studio to match Motown Studio A. All this I found out in the last few months as I’m doing this record. The guy built the studio that my band plays in as an exact replica of Studio A in the Motown building, and not too far off from Studio A in the Gold Star Recording Studio. Now, right around the corner on the other side of me is [United] Western Recorders. Another 20 of the greatest songs of all time were recorded there, and it got me really thinking, you know, here I am with all the opportunity in the world in the city I love and wanting to honor its history, and I’m on the same street as these two studios, blocks away, right in the middle of it. I owe to myself and to rock and roll to do something more than just whatever comes to mind, to think about it for a minute. I never really thought about the records. I’d just blast ‘em together, you know, whatever tune comes to mind that day. My philosophy was wake up with an idea, record it and be done with it. The two records I’ve done, I’ve never spent any more than two days on a song, writing and recording a song. I’m part of the low-fi, just get it done with the minimum amount of equipment and fuss, and get the idea out there. This record I took a little time. There’s some Motown influences in there. I wanted to make more of a feel good record, rock and roll but something you can dance to. There’s still some harder hitting stuff there, but, you know, Tattooed Millionaires for a long time has been pigeonholed as this Hollywood band. We have some cool haircuts and some tattoos and we’re from Hollywood, so right away people want to think it’s L.A. Guns, or Faster Pussycat, or Poison. You know what, no offense to those guys, I mean I’ve met a lot of them in my 20 years out here, and I’m friends with a lot of those guys, but I did not listen to those bands growing up. I wasn’t a Poison fan, I wasn’t really into 80s Hollywood rock. I mean, I can appreciate it now and if it’s on and people are dancing to it I find something to like about it, but when all that was going on I was into The Cult, and Joy Division and goth, like I said, and rediscovering The Dead Boys, and going off on my mission. In the 80s, “She’s My Cherry Pie,” and all that stuff, I wasn’t really into all that. So, my band, it appeals to people that like that music, and they seem to find something to like about it, but at the same time I wanted to make a record that was finally clarifying to people that we’re not a Hollywood glam band. We’re a glitter rock band that harkens back to T. Rex and Bowie, and The Stones and stuff like that with a modern twist on it, because hell it’s 2009, it’s not 1969. I know that. So, that’s what the new record’s about, although there are some hard hitting songs on there. I wanted to make a record that got people dancing in the aisles, dancing in the streets. We’ve played a few shows with the new songs and I’m excited because it’s doing that. I mean, we always had crowds that would stand there and pump fists in the air, but now they’re dancing, and I think that’s what music….when you can get people up and dancing, then I’ve done my job. So, that’s what’s changed about this record. I thought it was all just about getting people pumped up and fists in the air, but no, I want them to dance now. So, it’s a rock ‘n’ roll record and hopefully people will find it exciting and shake their hips to it, ‘cause that’s what I want it to do.

EP: That’s great. And, you know, I love all those 80s bands, but I also love The Cult. The Cult’s one of my favorite bands. I just like a wide variety of rock.

JJ: Yeah, I mean I listened to The Cult, and when “Electric” came out I got excited. All my friends, that was it, that was the last Cult record. They didn’t even buy it, they wouldn’t buy it. They thought it was complete shit.

EP: Oh, that’s one of the best albums ever!

JJ: They were from the gothic Cult, The Southern Death Cult. What was their real hit? “She Sells Sanctuary”? Was that it? The hit on the record before “Electric”? It was played in all the dance clubs, you know what I mean? They were more like a gothic dance band, and when “Electric” came out it was hard hitting and I was like, “Yeah, this album is great!” just stripped down.

EP: Yep, that’s one of my all time favorite albums.

JJ: Now I find myself, as my hair gets longer and I’m wearing the low leather cap, people are starting to say I look like the singer in Ministry or the singer in The Cult. Oh my God, I’m going through an Ian Astbury stage.

EP: [laugh] Well, that’s not a bad place to go. He’s hot!

JJ: Oh, yeah! He’s one of the greats! But, you know at the time, listen, I had girlfriends and we went to Poison shows. I went to Guns N’ Roses when they first came to New York. They played a place called Sundance. There were about 50-75 people in the club. At the end of that I wound up getting on their tour bus and smoking heroin at age 18 and getting fucked up. And, when I finally stumbled out of their tour bus, my band found me and they fired me from the band saying I was completely undependable and they’d been looking for me for hours and how could I do that. So, yeah, there’s some memories that go along with those bands for sure. I like Bon Jovi. I got to hang out with him back in the day and took in some shows. I always kind of did my best to infiltrate. I don’t like being in the crowd as much as I like being in the back. I like the look and the feel of the band right from the side of the stage. So, as a young person I did what I could do, befriended who I needed to, hung out at record stores, took the train into Manhattan all the time, hanging out by the studios, or catch sound checks, by the backstage door, any opportunity I could to slip back there. You know, a little like that KISS movie….

EP: "Detroit Rock City".

JJ: …when the guy starts walking in with the group. That was me, I did that all the time. I still do occasionally.

EP: I did that one time. [laugh] I snuck backstage with a whole group of people, I just kind of walked in with them. One of the guys in the group turned around and said, “Did you just come in with us?” I said, “Yeah.” And, he goes, “That’s cool!” I was 17 years old. It was the Sammy Hagar “Three Lock Box” tour with Night Ranger. I still have my backstage pass from that show that the keyboardist from Night Ranger handed to me. [laugh]

JJ: Yeah! I mean, they’re just people, too.

       

EP: Right. So, you’ve got a show coming up here in Phoenix on Friday April 17th at The Blooze Bar…

JJ: And, another one there on June 13th.

EP: Yeah, I saw that, that’s cool, ‘cause I’m really bummed because I’m gonna miss this show on the 17th, so I’m really glad you guys will be coming back in June. I’ll be out of town this show.

JJ: But, you’re seeing a cool show, right? Where are you going, Vegas?

EP: Yeah, I’m going up there to see the Sin City Sinners. And, I’m also going to see Britny Fox and Pretty Boy Floyd.

JJ: Right on!

EP: Yeah, it’ll be pretty cool because I haven’t seen, well I’ve never seen the Sin City Sinners, but I haven’t seen Britny Fox or Pretty Boy Floyd since back in the day, so it’s gonna be very cool. I’m really looking forward to it. But, yeah, I’ve had that trip planned for a while, so I’ll be out of town then. I noticed also that you guys will be heading to Michigan in August to do some shows up there.

JJ: Yeah, we’re gonna take the ol’ bus out on the road and pretty much cover the states in August and September, and then we’re going to Europe in October and November.

EP: Oh, okay, that was gonna be my next question; what kind of tour plans you have this year.

JJ: This record is gonna kick and I’m working out a deal with UE3 on promotions. They’re a big promotion company. And, yeah, I’m gonna do this record right. I feel strongly about this record and the timing of it, you know, and the environment of what’s happening in America, whether you like Obama or you don’t, we’ve got some issues right now. We can sit here and hope for change or we can go out there in the world and make it.

EP: Exactly.

JJ: So, I’ve talked enough about it, I’m gonna go out there and try to do something about it.

EP: That’s good. I’m not crazy about either party or any politician myself, at this point.

JJ: Yeah, I mean, I don’t know what happened to people. They forgot Obama’s a politician, man, and not only that he’s a lawyer. People want to believe, and I don’t blame them. They want to believe. But, what are we believing in, false idols? You don’t trust fuckin’ politicians. What happened? What happened is John Lennon’s been dead for fuckin’ 30 years, and, you know, Kurt Cobain, even though he didn’t have much to say, I mean he’s been gone for a generation. Who is this generation’s spokesman? Where is a John Lennon today? Who is he? Where is he?

EP: There isn’t one.

JJ: Yeah, I’m not saying I am, but I’m just saying, it’s like, you know, the powers that be made sure there wasn’t Princess Di right now talking about war in the Middle East, and they made sure that John Lennon wasn’t around to talk about peace right now. Call me a conspiracy buff or whatever, but I’ve been preaching about the New World Order for ten years and everyone was like, “Oh, that’s a conspiracy theory. That’s nuts!” And, it’s like, what’re the headlines in yesterday’s paper, and all week long? How many world leaders have to say we’re on the edge of a New World Order, New World Order, Obama’s New World Order?

EP: I know.

JJ: Well, what the hell!?

EP: Scary.

JJ: Yesterday it was the catch phrase of conspiracy nuts and today it’s a reality. That’s damn right!

EP: And, everybody’s okay with it, which is crazy.

JJ: Yeah, they basically just sold America’s sovereignty out to the world bankers, and if you read our bio on our page, that bio’s been the same since I left the Space Age Playboys, for ten years. It’s the same exact words and it talks about we’re fighting against this international banking cabal that’s making a mockery of democracy. You know, some things change and some things don’t. People’s gullibility, that hasn’t changed. The fact that all this gun violence is going on, and it’s like, let’s make the….you know, crashing the economy by design. Then, I don’t know, I almost feel like they made the phone call. Around the country a hundred guys picked up the phone and they said, “Catcher in the Rye,” and they went out and killed their families. Is it programming going on, or is everyone just….you know, people haven’t been out of work long enough. I’ve been out of work, too, and lot’s of people I know are out of work and they’re not picking up guns and killing their families and their co-workers. I don’t know, I think they’re programmed….destroy by design. All this gun violence now, it’s like…..

EP: So they can make stronger gun laws.

JJ: Yeah! Sure, they’d like to get our guns.

EP: So they can chip away at our Constitutional rights and freedoms.

JJ: I mean, America’s the biggest threat and the only obstacle to a one world government.

EP: Absolutely, I’m with you on that.

JJ: MySpace and all these things are tools that they use to homogenize the world. I see kids on Social Vibe now writing stuff like, “Human beings are disgusting. They need to be eliminated from the world.” It’s like, no, it’s not that. Human beings are doing what they need to survive when they’ve had guns put to their heads and they’re living in war torn countries, and all their resources have been stolen by the IMF and the World Bank and they’re suffering. Or, their countries are pumping out tons of gold and oil, but none of the wealth is reaching the people. They’re suffering and they’re having to destroy their environments just to survive.

EP: Yeah, they don’t know any better or they don’t have the resources to do any better.

JJ: Right. I like human beings. My best friends are human beings. I refuse to just paint the whole human race with this broad stroke of, you know, unfit to be on planet Earth. No, it’s a scientific fact that, like, 1out of 10 people are psychopaths or sociopaths or…like, what makes a person want to be the president? You know, nice people don’t get into politics usually, or if they do, by the time they get anywhere in power they’ve had to make so many compromises… One of the biggest influences on me still, I’m a big film buff. I like movies. I think some of the greatest movies beat the greatest albums. I like to get something. I can listen to a record and there can be good songs there, but it doesn’t give me insight into human nature or the human condition like movies do. There’ve been great movies on all of these subjects. There were great movies made 50 years ago that talked about why politics are how they are. They show a bright eyed guy getting into politics to make a positive change and after a 20 year career he’s compromised so many times to get anything done that he’s compromised his whole thing and he’s corrupt like the rest of them.

EP: Yeah, it’s almost like they sell their souls, kind of.

JJ: Yes. Well, that’s been our catch phrase, I mean sell your soul to rock ‘n’ roll is like….you’ve heard it before.

EP: Oh, sure.

JJ: We’ve all heard it before. But, we haven’t heard it recently. I brought that one back recently. We have sold our souls to rock ‘n’ roll, and it’s not just words. I have. My job in this world won’t be complete until I join the list of the martyrs that have stood for something. It probably will wind up for me the way it wound up for John Lennon, or Martin Luther King, or Gandhi; anyone that’s gone out on a limb and stood for something that mattered. I’m against war and in my mind you can’t justify any of it. People that justify it are just people that don’t want to face the truth. “Oh, there’s always war.” Yeah, because good people do nothing about it. Or, “There’s always gonna be poor people or hungry people.” Yeah, because good people don’t do enough about it. It doesn’t have to be that way.

EP: No, it doesn’t.

JJ: And, of course, how can you have a dream that, “Oh, with Obama as president things are gonna get better.” If you believe that then you can believe that you can make it better, if that makes any sense. But, yeah, I’m in Hollywood. I love the history of Hollywood. It’s one of the bigger influences on our music I guess would be classic movies. I love Marlon Brando and Montgomery Clift, my favorite actors. “Suddenly Last Summer”. Awesome movie.

EP: I’ve never seen that one. I like to catch some of those old movies when I can, but I haven’t seen that one.

JJ: Yeah, him and James Dean. Well, Montgomery Clift lived too long with too many drinking problems, you know. He kind of went down the tubes in a bad way. Like, look at Farrah Fawcett. And, that’s one other thing I hate about America, is like they build people up only to destroy them, only to rebuild them again. You know, if Farrah Fawcett had died in 1980, she would be this beautiful iconic, you know, symbol of….

EP: Kind of like Marilyn Monroe or something.

JJ: Now she’s got colon cancer and people are fuckin’ making jokes about it. It’s just fuckin’ disgusting, man. I just feel like people are being so trapped and limited in ways of their expression, that they just lash out. The only way they know how to express themselves now is to say mean things. And, of course, American Idol hasn’t helped.

EP: [laugh]

JJ: I mean, can you imagine a more worse…I mean, all my friends on Facebook are all, “Oh, I gotta go watch Idol!” I’m like, “Are you kidding me!?” It’s like, you’re out of work and hungry, but you’re gonna go watch Idol. Can’t you connect the dots. You’re out of work and hungry because American Idol is on fuckin’ TV. And, it may seem like, what the hell is that guy talking about? But, believe me, if you connect the dots far enough you’ll see that, yes, that whole attitude, getting a whole country of people to mindlessly watch that shit while people butcher fuckin’ great songs. I mean, if I have to watch another American Idol, luckily I don’t watch it, but if I have to see the clip of another American Idol contestant butchering an Aretha Franklin song I’m gonna fuckin’ puke!

EP: [laugh]

JJ: Then, who was it recently that declared someone the fuckin’ queen of soul, and Aretha came out going, “Excuse me, I’m still alive! I’m the Queen of fuckin’ Soul!”

EP: Good for her!

JJ: It isn’t just because you have a MySpace account and because you can, that you can say and do these things. You know, is your name Sixx? What’s your fuckin’ name? My name’s Johnny Jetson. Yes, it was a nickname, but I went through the legal motions and I went to court and I filed the papers and I paid my money and I went back to court, and now in the eyes of the law I’m Johnny Jetson. If your name is Amanda Sixx, then go fuckin’ into the courthouse and make it Sixx. How many Sixx’s do we need? I don’t understand it. I mean, I know you love those bands and I do, too. I went and bought Motley Crue’s first record when it came out. I bought the second one, and then that was it, for whatever reason. You know, either they caught on, they became big, and they weren’t appealing to me because they weren’t like my special band, or because they got off the beaten track of the first two records. But, why now, how many years later, 27 years after their first record first record came out, 27 years later, why are the kids naming themselves after Nikki Sixx? I mean, 26 years after The Beatles came out would have put it at 1990. Did everyone, in 1990, start calling themselves McCartney or Lennon, and wear Beatles haircuts? I don’t understand what’s happening. So, there you go. Johnny Jetson is a little bit confused about what’s going on, but is convinced that it’s not all the great for the youth of America. They should be reinventing rock ‘n’ roll instead of going back to a point where it was mediocre at best, in my mind. I’m asking you this question, what’s going on with people? Wouldn’t it have seemed weird in 1990 if people had started having Beatles haircuts and calling themselves Marky Lennon and Angela Lennon?

EP: Yeah, I guess it would have been. I hadn’t thought of it that way. But, I think it’s coming. They’re sick of what currently passes for “rock”, and I think they’re trying to find themselves. I think they have those influences, but I think they’ll start really doing they’re own thing. I’ve run across some great bands already, and they’ve taken those influences but made it their own, and have their own original stuff going. They’re not being just copies and clones of those bands. So, I think they’re all finding themselves.

JJ: There’s still plenty of copies and all kinds of clones. I mean, the whole Britpop thing was a copy of the Beatles, and all those Oasis bands. I mean, they didn’t quite sound like it, but they were going for that whole Beatles, English thing. And, there’s plenty of bands that are drawing from the Crue and bands like that. I mean, that’s cool. I did it, too, I guess, along the way. Obviously, we’ve taken the best of what we like and incorporated it into what we like. I just think that you owe it yourself and, especially if you’re in a band, you owe it to your fans to go a little bit deeper, to seek out a little bit more of the truth and where it came from. It’s a little bit discouraging at times, you know, “Smokin’ in the Boys Room,” and people are like, “Oh, the Motley Crue song.” It’s like, no, Brownsville Station, man. And, you know what, go punch up Brownsville Station on YouTube, because you’ll see that Motley Crue didn’t just borrow that song, but they put out that song to show people exactly where they were coming from, because the bass player in 1975 was doing all of Nikki Sixx’s bass moves, and the drummer was doing all of Tommy Lee’s drum moves. When “Smokin’ in the Boys Room” came out everyone loved the song, but no one got it. It wasn’t the age of the internet in the 80s. How would you fuckin’ know? How would you even track down Brownsville Station’s live shows back then? You would’ve had to go to the mail order in the back of magazines and start ordering VHS tapes. It wasn’t like today. Does that make it less of an excuse that people can just cop other peoples’ moves, music, and just make it their own? I think now that the internet is here it’s even less of an excuse, because you have the tool and the resources to go to see exactly what’s going on, where it came from, where it’s going. That’s just my insight. I know it comes off as elitist to hear people bagging on what people like. You know, I took punches on the playground for wearing my Motley Crue shirt. I got beat up, bloody noses. People beat me up, because I wore Motley Crue shirts to school, and those same people today are buying Motley Crue records for their kids and declaring to the world that they were huge Motley Crue fans. The same thing with Guns N’ Roses, man. You know, 99% of the people that like Guns N’ Roses today really don’t deserve the right to, I mean, not that you don’t have rights to, of course they do, they love the music. But, what about the people that suffered for it back when it was not the mainstream, when it was out on a fringe. I got beat up for wearing Guns N’ Roses t-shirts, man. You know, jocks didn’t like that shit. Now kids in school, people, make fun of the emos and stuff. Those are the kids that are getting beatings for liking their music, by the same people that profess to love rock ‘n’ roll, and rock ‘n’ roll, number one, is “to each his own” and “live and let live”. You know, stay the fuck out of people’s business, and fight the good fight with common goals, with other people in mind. Rock and roll isn’t meant to hurt people. I mean, you don’t even know what rock and roll is today, because it’s funny how it’s like….my whole life I’ve played in rock ‘n’ roll bands and now you say, “rock and roll,” and people are like, “What is that?” What is rock and roll!?! Well, what do you call Motley Crue, ‘cause that’s not heavy metal, that’s rock ‘n’ roll. Motley Crue was the contrast to heavy metal. At the time, heavy metal, in 1982, ‘83, ‘84, was Metallica, for those that were hip enough to fuckin’ seek them out…

EP: Judas Priest.

JJ: Judas Priest, Iron Maiden, Ozzy Osbourne, Black Sabbath before that. That’s heavy metal. What’s heavy metal today? You can call it Slipknot. It ain’t heavy metal, man. Music is totally losing any of its, I don’t know, soul or songmanship. It’s just become a lot of noise. Maybe I’m getting old. My parents said that about Motley Crue and then they’d go listen to a Led Zeppelin record or Hendrix, and they’d say, “This is real music.” I still love Hendrix. What’s not to love? It’s great. Some things sound dated. You listen to stuff from the 80s, like The Cars. The Cars are a great band, but you listen to some of their stuff later in the 80s and it sounds real dated, real cheesy keyboard sounds and….dated. You can put Hendrix on and, man, it sounds just as powerful, to me anyway, and as exciting as it did when I was a little kid first hearing it. So, I mean, Tattooed Millionaires are trying to stay in that area of rock ‘n’ roll that is timeless. When we get reviews I hear everything from like, the obvious you know, the Faster Pussycat to stuff a little off the beaten track like Jesus and Mary Chain, The Cult, Bowie and Ziggy, and all these things. That gets me excited.

EP: Oh yeah, I mean, I can hear lots of different stuff, even like kind of psychedelic…

JJ: Yeah, thank you for hearing that in there.

EP: I just hear all kinds of different influences in there, from….spanning all the decades of rock ‘n’ roll.

JJ: Right. Well, I’m hoping that on this new record you’ll kind of be able to hear a little bit of that Temptations, you know, [singing] “Papa Was A Rollin’ Stone” thing. Like, dripping honey sweet, you know. That’s from songs like, [singing] “Girl I love the way you move me, the way you soothe me, the way you free my soul. Girl I love the way you rock me, the way you sock it to me, baby, all night long. Oh, don’t call it love…” [ha ha]

EP: Cool. Well, I love the idea of giving back and I also, with my other website, I donate a portion of my proceeds to various charities. I know that your involved in that kind of stuff, too. Can you tell readers a bit about your charitable works?

JJ: Sure. Well, we’ve aligned ourselves with the Bill Smith Homeless Veterans Project out in L.A., and what they do is they get homeless veterans off the street and into efficiency apartments with internet service, and they help with job placement and just kind of help them get back on their feet. Now, this has been a switch to me. I mean, my dad went to Vietnam and he came back broken up and lost a lot of his friends, and for the first few years of my life I was just raised by women, because all the guys were gone. That’s why I don’t like men very much, and that’s why the lineup in the band has changed a lot, because it takes a special person to be in this band. You have to be extremely caring. People ask, “Hey, you goes go through a lot…” They think there’s something wrong with me… “Oh, Johnny must be an asshole. He loses such great, attractive members of his band that don’t stick it out.” No, it’s not me, it’s Tattooed Millionaires. I work for the same company that the band members do. It’s a corporation. I’m an employee just like everyone else. It’s got a ten point guideline of what’s expected while you’re in the band, and I’ve signed it, and a lot of people won’t sign it. You have to be caring about people and you have to put other people first. Now, you know rock ‘n’ roll. You deal with rockers all the time. I’m sure you can realize that not too many rock ‘n’ roll people who are trying to make it in music are putting anyone but themselves first.

EP: Right.

JJ: So, that explains why people come and go. I mean, I give everyone a chance that I play in the band with. I wanna give young people a chance and create a cool environment for them to be creative and stuff, but there’s also high expectations. High expectations on things about helping other people when you’re a young person can seem like it’s coming from another planet. That’s something that’s from another world. They’re in a rock ‘n’ roll band to get laid and have people stroke their ego, not to, like, go change garbage bags at a charity event. That’s what’s expected in my band. Getting back to why a veterans thing, because in my mind and from what I’ve seen, America is quick to wave the flag when people are marching off to war, and then where are they when these people come home? They come home all broken up, in a shambles, and everyone that was waving the flag…there’s no one around to pick up the pieces when these people come back. I feel that even though I’m completely against war of any sort, it makes the most sense for me to try to help out the people affected by it. I mean, most people that feel that way about war might take up a charity like PETA or help animals, or whatever. But, I’m against war and I’m for helping people affected by it.

EP: Sure, ‘cause, I mean, they were just doing their jobs, you know.

JJ: Yeah, they were just doing their jobs, man. I mean, come on, they pulled the wool over their eyes. You know, for so many years it was like, join the Army National Guard. No one’s going to war, it’s just to get money for college and you’re a weekend warrior. And, how many of those people that never thought they’d ever go overseas to war are dead now? The country got lulled into it, got lulled into being passive about it, and they got lured into it with dollar signs. Look what they’re doing on MySpace. How dare MySpace advertise an Army job to 14 year old kids! You know, and the video games and the whole brainwashing that goes along with it. Now you got these guys who show up at a bomb silo in Utah and fly remote control planes into Pakistan and kill people, and then they’re starting to be psychologically affected by it. This isn’t a game anymore, this isn’t a video game. I really just killed a bunch of people.

EP: Right, yeah. My dad was in Vietman, too, and it changed him.

JJ: Yeah, my dad got an honorable discharge because he got psoriasis over 90% of his body. They gave him an honorable discharge after a year and a half of being in Vietnam, but then he joined the Merchant Marines and finished it out as a sailor. Then he got into fishing. But, I grew up in that era where if Vietnam didn’t kill ya, then jumping into a pool with no water on Quaaludes did, or getting hit on your motorcycle did. It was the 70s and everything was falling apart. The cities were broke and garbage was piling up in New York and there were blackouts. Everyone was trying to put the pieces back. Then the 80s became the “me” 80s and I’ve lost track of what the hell’s happened, you know. When John Lennon was gone no one ever stepped up. I think more people need to step up. If anything can be said by this interview, please, Johnny Jetson is asking all the other guys in bands to fuckin’ step up, man. Be more than just a pretty face with a low slung guitar. Stand for something that means something. Go out on a limb for people. Understand that young people are suffering persecution just like you did when you wore the Motley Crue shirts to school. And, if they’re gonna wear a Tattooed Millionaires shirt to school they’re gonna get beat up for it, and you have to know that. Don’t lure people down the road like bands did to me and not be there for them when they need you. Everyday I get on and there’s kids that have problems. They ask me for advice about how to deal with their alcoholic parents. They’re having problems at school and they’re being persecuted. That’s a role that you need to be able to step up and take. It isn’t just, “I’m a fuckin’ rock star. Treat me nice and give me what I want.” What are you gonna give people? Be prepared to give back, and please, if you don’t put people first, put your guitar down and go fuckin’ lay brick, ‘cause rock ‘n’ roll doesn’t need any more self-centered fuckin’ assholes just trying to be fuckin’ rock stars. It doesn’t. Go dress up in your mother’s clothes and fuckin’ keep it to yourself, ‘cause you’re just hurting people. We need strong solid people with a morality based on caring for people, and when you can’t say “fuck”, scream it, and when you can’t say “coke”, drop it from an airplane. Where are the Lenny Bruce’s of the world. It’s like the system gets a hold of them, makes an offer they can’t refuse, and then they stop rocking the boat. There’s that comedian, Denis whatever his name is. He’s on that, um…

EP: Denis Leary?

JJ: Yeah, he’s on that fireman show now. I thought he had the potential to be someone that shook up the system, but they got to him, too. They got to him. ‘Cause that guy, the guy was smoking, you know….[imitating Denis Leary’s voice] “I smoke, and I eat red meat, and I’m smoking 20 packs a day…” You know, that guy was shaking up the system. He’s not doing that anymore. And, George Carlin’s gone now. He was a good one for shaking the system up. It gets pretty lonely to be a person like me in the world of rock ‘n’ roll. Carlin’s gone, Lennon’s gone, and even Princess Di, who would have had something to say about a war in the Middle East considering her boyfriend was from the Middle East, and she was the big vocal person about the hidden land mines. She would’ve had something to say. They took her out so she wouldn’t have anything to say.

EP: Yeah, that’s what they do.

JJ: That’s what they do. How many people are still alive, how many people made it that have really stood the hard ground? Not too many.

EP: No. Okay, I’m going to give you the opportunity now to do some shameless plugging of your other projects. I know you have a record company, the Suite C Studios, a PR company, and now even transportation services, and….

JJ: Right, well, Tattooed Millionaires is a band that’s looking to give back, and that ain’t no bull shit. I mean, we bought a tour bus a couple years back, and as the legend goes, it’s Lynyrd Skynyrd’s original tour bus. It’s a 1973 Silver Eagle bus, and we totally redid it and outfitted it to be a rock ‘n’ roll tour bus again, and we can offer that to bands to tour for pennies on the dollar of what it would cost them to go through any other company. We’re looking for bands to go on the road with us to split expenses. We have the studio, Suite C, in Hollywood and bands are welcome to come here and rehearse and record for a fraction of what it would cost to do that anywhere else. So, hit us up on MySpace and let us know if you’re, um, any bands that are interested in touring with us, you know, jumping in the bus and using our gear and splitting expenses, and coming out to the studio, or whatever.

EP: Okay, well is there anything else you wanted to add that maybe we didn’t touch on, before I let you go?

JJ: Let’s see, we talked a little about politics. We talked about the cause. You know, just anyone out there, you know, that has a worthy charity that they would like to see Tattooed Millionaires get involved in, please hit us up. I know we have a benefit concert for epilepsy scheduled over the summer on the east coast in North Carolina. So, while we’re out on tour this August and September making our way around the country, if you want us to stop in or if we can be of use to anyone to help a worthy cause, we’re totally willing and available. So, don’t be shy and hit us up and we’ll do our best to help you and your cause out. Other than that, hello everyone. Don’t forget, I know there’s ten million bands always out on tour, but it isn’t every day that the Tattooed Millionaires can make their way around the country in a way that’s gonna make a difference, so please come out to the shows. There may not be another chance to see our band. It isn’t like we come around every day, so if you hear about Tattooed Millionaires coming to your town, come out, support us, black or white, red or blue, fat or skinny, it doesn’t matter. We care about people. It doesn’t matter what you look like. None of that matters. It doesn’t matter that you’re not the hottest girl in the world. I know a lot of people shy away from going to see bands they love because they’re afraid of what the bands are gonna think about them. You know, we have relationships with people on MySpace and they’re our biggest fans, and then I hear that they didn’t make the show when we came to town and I was like, “Why not?” And, they’re like, “Well, ‘cause I’m fat. I didn’t want you to know that I was fat.” I’m like, “That’s not a concern.” We see deeper than that in Tattooed Millionaires. We see into the hearts and minds. So, come out. We’re looking to make friends, you know.

EP: That’s fantastic.

JJ: Thank you. I appreciate you dealing with me, alright?

EP: Yeah, and I appreciate you taking the time to do the interview and we’ll have you guys featured next week.

JJ: Oh, by the way, plug that show. [The Tattooed Millionaires will be appearing at The Blooze Bar in Phoenix on April 17th.]

EP: Absolutely, that’s why we’re timing your feature for next week. We have tons of Arizona friends on our MySpace page.

JJ: I haven’t met Tumbleweed [owner of The Blooze Bar], but we had about an hour long conversation the other day and he seems like a righteous dude.

EP: He is very cool.

JJ: We look forward to coming to Phoenix. Phoenix is our sister city. You know, we campaigned for Ron Paul and Ron Paul finished second behind McCain there in those primaries. Same thing in Nevada. So, the people of Arizona, the people of Phoenix, are very like-minded. They’re very much into freedom, and I l think people in Las Vegas and Phoenix, they kind of see through all of the bull shit. That’s why we get along so well with the people there. So, we’re excited to come back and see the people of Phoenix.

EP: Awesome. Yeah, Tumbleweed’s a great guy and I hear nothing but good things from bands about how he deals with bands.

JJ: Cool. I won’t see you this time, but I will see you in June.

EP: Yes.

JJ: Excellent.

EP: Okay, thank you very much.

JJ: Thank you.

Great interview, huh. I want to encourage everyone to make sure and see them when they come to a town near you. For more information, go to the Tattooed Millionaires' MySpace page and website.


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