Ratt guitarist Warren DiMartini has released the following statement regarding drummer Bobby Blozter claiming to have won the legal rights to use the band’s name:
“Back in March Bob Blotzer phoned me and said he wanted to form a Ratt tribute band and call it something like “… Ratt Experience”. I suggested he not use Ratt in the title and call it something like Bob’s Cellar as Ratt’s debut record Out of the Cellar has rounded its third decade. He said something to the effect that he wanted to use Ratt in the title “like Jason Bonhan’s Led Zeppelin Experience”. I said I had no problem with him playing songs he recorded with Ratt, but I didn’t agree to him using the name in the title. He used it anyway.
Now he is soliciting his tribute band as Ratt which he is completely unauthorized to do. I am totally against it, and steps are being taken to prevent any further misuse of the name as well as representation about future Ratt performances.”
Blozter announced that “After a five-year battle over trademark issues, doing everything he could to appease and re-assemble the band, Bobby Blotzer, the CEO of WBS Inc. has taken control of the Ratt brand.” Read more here.
14 Responses
Tyger, that was friggin hilarious, I love it!!!
Ratt songs are just too easy to satirize:
You play the Midwest dive club scene
You’re calling all the shots
You’re struck by lightning
You’re in court!
This is a very dysfunctional group of guys. I have met one guy from this band and while I love the music the guy was a complete jerk. It is a bad situation and I see no problem with Bobby calling this the Ratt Experience. He is not calling it Ratt. Pearcy uses the term Ratt also. If the band can not get it together I just see no problem with Bobby’s name. Come on, “Bob’s Cellar”? So now Warren wants to name Bobby’s band? And use a lame one at that. I am not saying whether Bobby’s idea is a good one or not. People will decide whether they want to see it or not. But you can see by the actions of these 3 that there is really no hope of them getting along.
Ratt lol….”Ratt” LMAO…effing HILARIOUS
Tyger.I just about pissed myself at ” we’ll kind of find a way just give it time” and ” Rosenkrantz to Guilderstern”. LMFAO!!!!
Love Warren as a player, and maybe this is me but he seems to have a bit of EVH syndrome.
I get that the dysfunction in Ratt is second only to our current political system and Warren wants to protect the integrity of the name brand. But for him to sit at home and say “no” to everything seems to more of a power move than anything else. If he was out doing something I can see him protecting his piece of the pie but the guy seems to want to shelve and mothball everything and anything to do with Ratt.
Which if the rumors are true and he’s got another source of income I can’t blame everyone else that helped create and build the brand name for wanting / needing to cash in to put food on the table. No matter how lame the idea is. Warren is a great player and a big part of the Ratt sound. But it was a sum of its parts that made the band great. So I can why Stephen and Juan wanted to get back their share of the name and why Bobby believes he is entitled to use it. I really don’t see the point of mothballing the Ratt moniker at this point in time.