Were you like Axl Rose in the “Welcome To The Jungle” video, stepping off the bus in Hollywood?
[Laughs] It was, kind of. My friend—the one I had the show with—she and I drove out, kamikaze style, drove all night and came to Los Angeles. I didn’t know anything. I was pretty unworldly. You already wrote the story behind “Johnny, Are You Queer?” but I wanted to ask how you got hooked up with Bomp! and (label owner) Greg Shaw. Before that, I had a deal with a label called MSR Records. The label folded before the record came out, so Bomp! came along and wanted “Johnny, Are You Queer?” Greg Shaw understood what the song was about. He got publicity that was just unbelievable, around the world. Elektra signed me because I had this massive hit on KROQ, but they became very afraid of the song and killed it. They absolutely pulled it. Because of the word “queer.” Yes. They were frightened of the word. (The next single), “He Could Be The One,” was actually a bigger hit for me, because people could actually hear it on the radio. At one point, they approved (“Johnny”) for AM radio if there wa
