Hanoi Rocks - Rock'n"Roll Divorce

Today’s post is a reminiscence of Finnish export rock band  Hanoi Rocks.  Formed  in  Helsinki,  Finland in 1979 by Micheal Monroe ( Matti Fagerholm, vocals, saxophone ) and his friends Andy McCoy ( Antti Hulkko, guitars ), Nasty Suicide ( Jan Stenfors, guitars ), Sammi Yaffa ( Sami Takamaki, bass ). Last addition to them was Gipsy Casino ( Jesper Sporre, drums ) who joined the band in Stockholm in 1980. After some hard time when they struggled due to lack money or contract with record company finally in 1981 they released their first full-length album “Bangkok Shocks, Saigon Shakes, Hanoi Rocks”. In the meantime they were touring extensively all over Finland and Sweden. By 1982 they moved to London and released albums “Oriental Beat” and “Self Destruction Blues”. Then Razzle ( Nick Dingley, drums ) replaced Gipsy Casino and it was beginning of their worldwide career. Following two studio albums “Back To Mystery City”, “Two Steps From The Move” and a lived album “All Those Wasted Years” were well accepted and sold in million copies all over the world. The band went on tours in Japan, mainland Asia (India, HongKong, Vietnam) and Europe ( UK, Norway, Sweden, native Finland ). But gigs in America in 1984 seemed to be their breakthrough tour. They played west coast in November and looked for Los Angeles shows which were all sold out in less than half an hour. But then came the tragic death of Razzle in a car accident nearby Redondo Beach, California. Tour dates were cancelled, the worldwide success passed them by. Hanoi Rocks disbanded next year after the short tour in Poland with Terry Chimes (ex-The Clash)on drums. Their last concert in Poznań, Poland in May’85 was recorded and released as a live album titled “Rock’n’roll Divorce”. The band was reactivated in 2003 by Michael Monroe and Andy McCoy, released next two albums, made some gigs and finally came to an end in 2009. In conclusion, I recommend to watch and listen to live versions of their classic songs recorded in Poland in 1985. Personally I saw one of their last concerts, I must say that was truly great show.