Take Me With You

Today's Artwork is by Elizabeth Steele

I hope you can read the inscription on the artwork

***

TY Alexandra for sharing this intimate poem with us.

I heard your voice, I heard your words, you kept me safe.
I was young, felt out of place.
You were there in my headphones helping me find my path.
I loved you as you were, from a far distance, how else?
You were a million miles away, you never knew I existed.
I grew up, became a woman. Got married and gave birth to three beautiful children.
You were there but so far away. I loved you, wanted to tell you about it all.
My husband abused me infront of the children, I wanted to die.
Thought to myself, I´ll see you on the other side. 
 I heard your voice, heard your words and came back.
You wouldn´t let me leave, you were a million miles away.
I thought, another time and another life.
Left the husband, brought the children with me.
Listened to your words, your voice, alone but safe.
Thought to myself; someday I will.
One day my heart broke in to a million pieces.
They said you had died, refused to believe you are gone.
Went back to the husband, he got nice, treated the family with respect.
Authorities came, took the children away, brought me to a shelter.
Family turned away, friends turned away.
I´m alone, can hear your voice, can hear your words.
Where are you? Why didn’t you wait?
I have nothing else.  Let me go with you.
Please come back for me, take me with you.
Please don´t go, I need to tell you something; it´ll take a lifetime.
Stay. I love you, even when everything dies.
You were never alone, I was there.
All the time.  

***

A big Thanks to Gayle for picking out her favorite video from headbangers ball:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HZ-HR6fBuzg

Irish Keeping TON Alive

So, when I asked if TON could be copied successfully, I got a couple of good responses. Comparisons aside, because you know we are partial when it comes to Peter's voice and music. I do not post this to cause ridicule. I post this because Peter would be bewildered that tribute bands exist.  And the type of person that he was, he would have shown up at a "Bloody Kisses" show, paid full price to support musicians. (though I can't imagine what he would have shouted from the audience). Besides Bloody Kisses in Ireland, I know of another tribute in Staten Island. Here is what one of our For The Love Of Pete Steele family has written:

It is with the utmost respect and honour when my friends and I get onto a stage to play Pete's music to his loyal fans. We don't make money from it - it's not about money - it's about paying our respects as 4 massive TON fans and to keep Pete's music alive and played loudly and live - the way it's supposed to be! You can read a review of one of the shows here; http://www.metalireland.com/2011/08/21/bloody-kisses-honey-for-christ-mourning-of-the-heretic-live-review/ Or search for Bloody Kisses tribute on youtube if you are interested. Pete is always in our hearts and is the reason we do this! Chris

By Christian Stynes

Thanks Chris for keeping the music alive with your own twist on Peter's musical legacy. Remember, imitation is flattery. Please support Christian by checking out the video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X_jBpAPLWSI

****

Thanks to Chris for finding this Autumn Eyes Cover on Youtube

 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UosBwFeTzx4&feature=youtube_gdata_player

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Thanks to Alexandra for turning us onto Otto's daughter - the song is "Peter"
It's a tribute song in memory of him
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yErlltWm7bk

Could You Cover TON?

So, dear friends, it seems that lots of bands are using October to do cover songs of TON or dedication songs to Peter. I'm hoping that the sentiment is genuine and not a marketing ploy. I'm sure there is going to be a little of both in the coming years. I'd be interested in seeing what Johnny and Kenny have been doing on tour to bow their heads to a lost brother. Any tidbits from you all about this would be appreciated. I haven't seen their band yet, so I'd like to know more.

Also, I haven't heard it and I couldn't find it online, but a band called "Autumns Eyes"  is doing a cover of "Love You To Death." I'd be interested to hear how Peter's voice and range is handled. If you happen to find it, please post in the comments and I'll post on the blog for all to discover together.

Here is the link to the site for details: http://www.smnnews.com/2011/09/07/autumns-eyes-reveals-new-album-please-deceive-me-details/



Not sure if I've shared this before, but MTV posted a rememberance. See a little excerpt:

Whenever people in music die prematurely, critics ponder who they really were and whether their art was a true reflection of their inner selves. Inevitably, if they wrote angry or heavy songs, they're described as "complex." It's practically a cliché, yet it probably best sums up Steele — complex and contradictory. Steele wasn't a simple guy. He was articulate, well read and intelligent. But it sometimes seemed like that's not the side he wanted his fans to see. He'd mention his admiration for the historical figure Rasputin and then make poop jokes in the same breath. He often talked about how he was just an average Joe from Brooklyn whose happiest days were back when he worked picking up garbage for the New York City Department of Parks & Recreation.

http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1637149/peter-steele-type-o-negative-remembrance.jhtml

Warm Beer - Lousy Food

Marie and I were talking the other day about some of the places Peter took us when we were teenagers so that we would get an opportunity to enjoy the nightlife. We'd go to Zappa's ... L'Amours ... he'd drop us off at Roller Palace ... but the one place we all enjoyed in Brooklyn which doesn't exist anymore was billed as "Warm Beer & Lousy Food ... The Crazy Country Club."

I don't know why anyone wrote a book about the place, but if you are interested check out:  http://www.amazon.com/Warm-Beer-Lousy-Food-Country/dp/1440171750

Peter brought us there for the first time in the early 90s, telling the girls to make sure we wore skirts so we'd look older. Little did we know that the joke was on us, because the moment you walked though the door, a wind machine on the floor blew your skirt up and all the bouncers laughed at you.

We remember being there with Peter and his then girlfriend Donna (later his wife). While Marie, my cousins and Donna went to the ladies room, I sat at the table with Peter as he ordered up some greasy dishes. All of the sudden over the loud speaker you could hear Donna and Nancy bitching about someone. Then you heard the toilet flush, girls talking about their hair and who the ugly guy at the next table was. They didn't know it and Peter didn't tell them that the place was rigged with a microphone in the bathrooms. When they came to the table, they didn't understand why we were laughing at them and why people were pointing.

The place was a dive ... but they didn't proof anyone. Though the place was called a country club, I never heard anything but comedians, metal and hardcore.

The Crazy Country Club was one of Peter's favorite places to go. He would find out what comedians were there and then invite a crew to a night out. It was one of our favorite memories of being with Pete.

Btw, Don't you love that photo ?

The Call of the Pig

I've said it here before that you guys have a huge responsibility to your younger family members and your friend's kids. We are the influencers ... the ones that introduce the younger generation to new music, take them out to see their first band in a club, show them that being a music geek is a great thing. It all comes down to you to be the cool aunt, uncle, mother, father in your family. The one who seems to know everything. The one with an ipod filled with undiscovered new sounds.

Who will Danny, Siobhan, Victoria, Sammi, Toria, Antonio, Kara and Tristan get their musical influences from in our family ... the next generation of cousins don't have a "Peter" to depend on. Maybe James (whose is a successful musician in his own right) or Sara (a band photographer) will influence these teens ... or maybe cousins Brian, Michelle, Kerry or Marie will plan out the concerts and get them interested in new music.

Ever since I was young, Pete would supply the new music to listen to. I remember the first time Peter took us to the midnight movie in Greenwich Village to see The Wall. I was out with his friends and my cousin Nancy. Peter  bought buckets of popcorn with soda and Hershey bars. It was so much fun being out with the big kids and then having an opportunity to talk about the film and listen to the music with people much older than me.

When I wasn't being introduced to mainstream music, Peter would come back from seeing bands or touring the country with music for us to listen to. He'd call out his favorite pig noise, saying, "here kiddy piggies" and we'd race over to him to see what he had. I remember being given White Zombie to listen to, as well as Twisted Sister, Biohazard, Agnostic Front, Cro-Mags, Crumbsuckers, Urban Waste, Sheer Terror.


The last time I saw him at his sister's house, Peter told me he had a box of cds for me to look through and share with the cousins. He said he met lots of talented artists and got reacquainted with musicians from the past that he thought he'd like to tour with again. That box of cds is sitting at my aunt's apt waiting for us to pick through. But it's not the same. The sound of Pete's pig call and his comments about the individuals who handed him the cds were always priceless.

                                      ***************
Finally, a little recognition from press to compare TON's "Unsuccessfully Coping With the Natural Beauty of Infidelity" with other bands songs about similar subjects:

http://www.thedailyrock.com/2011/09/05/converge%E2%80%99s-%E2%80%98jane-doe%E2%80%99-turns-10/

A Labor Day of Love

This photo is great

Here in America, we set aside a federal day to honor 'laborers' with a holiday always landing on the first Monday of September. It also signifies the end of Summer (Pete Sr. and my favorite time of the year) and the coming of Fall (Peter's and Nettie's favorite).

If you are working today, I'm sorry to hear that. For the rest of you all, enjoy the last of your BBQs, block parties, beach days ... no one hated going back to school more than Pete. From the first day that school let out for Summer, he'd have a countdown of the number of hours till we had to go back to school.

Here's something to check out when you have some free time. A band called Voyager released an album called "The Meaning of I." Their song, "Iron Dream" was written about Peter. See this review. If anyone can find a youtube of them doing this song, please post it in comments. Thanks.

http://metaldelirium.net/voyager-the-meaning-of-i/

Nettie Kept Peter In the China Cabinet

Some of you complained that if you don't have gmail you aren't able to leave a comment with your name. The easiest way to do it is to go to the comments section. Pull down on the tab to reveal several ways to leave a message with your name. If you choose the one that indicates what "name and url" just put your name in and leave the URL empty. Then, when you leave a message it will show whose leaving it... this way, there is no need for anonymous comments ... Hope this blogger 101 helps.

Thank You to Terri Spray from Indianapolis Indiana for this doll.

The box it was found in was post marked 4/3/2000.

 

This Peter doll is the largest of 3 that the family knows of, with the artist sending several to Nettie several years before.

 

Nettie gave 1 to daughter Patricia. Peter's girlfriend Lisa has a small version. Peter took this one from his home on East 18th Street with him and eventually put into his sister Nancy's coffin when she died.

 

 

Ready - Aim - Friar

Personally, I think Josh is too scruffy here,

but this is one of my fav pics of Pete

Always a thinker, Peter Steele not only rattled off some of these phrases in his music, but he's been known to use them in everyday conversations. Sometimes if you talked with him long enough, you'd learn about how math and science are intertwined, or you'd get your vocabulary word of the day. Peter's sister Patricia thought you'd like to have a glimpse into an everyday conversation with Pete. This is why kids loved him. He loved to answer their "why questions" because he enjoyed finding out himself.

Today's word could be: Technocratic

Fibonacci numbers: By definition, the first two Fibonacci numbers are 0 and 1, and each subsequent number is the sum of the previous two: 0,1,1,3,5,8,13,21,34,55,89,144  Fibonacci numbers are connected with the golden ratio, & appear in biological settings such as branching in trees, arrangement of leaves on a stem, the fruit spouts of a pineapple, the flowering of artichoke, an uncurling fern and the arrangement of a pine cone.

Zoanthropic: A kind of monomania in which the patient believes himself transformed into one of the lower animals.

Lupine (Characteristic of or resembling a wolf; Rapacious; ravenous).

Avagadro’s number (constant) In chemistry and physics,constant is defined as the ratio of the number of entities (usually atoms or molecules) in a sample to the amount of substance. Thus it is the proportionality factor that relates the mass per amount of substance, to the mass of the entity, and it has the value 6.02214179(30)×1023 mol-1.

Also, Pat found a few more Peter-isms that are worth a mention. Many of you have been gracious enough to include your own favorites in your FB posts and comments here. What do you think of these:

Faith Lift

Concentration Campers

Re-Erection

Praise the Lured

The Gardeners of Eden

Boston, Masspsychosis

Deaf Penalty


Denmark 1997 Interview with Josh and Peter:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8JRgo8O7_LE

My Record Collection Pauses Mid 1980s

OK, DVR alert. Do you like the TV show Cops? Do you like Vampires, Werewolves & Zombies? Then you have to watch the new series on MTV called "Death Valley" which is a combo of blood, gore, stupid humor, keystone cops and our favorite monsters. I could see Peter watching this show and thought I'd share this with you all:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UQKOYw4vi1Y

THRASHTHRASHTHRASHTHRASH



Thought I'd share a small article from THRASH Magazine that was sent to me recently from a friend of this blog. Thank you for sharing:

A year ago today, Petrus T. Ratajczyk, or as we know him by his stage name Peter Steele, came to a very unfortunate end at the age of 48. Susbtance abuse and alcohol addiction plagued his health until attending rehab because of family intervention in 2005. After years of sobriety, and improved health Peter Steele passed away due to hearth failure on April 14, 2010. The Metal community suffered a mighty blow.

Peter Steele's bass-baritone vocals and lyric composition focusing on topics such as depression, addiction, romance, and death combined with such powerful and moving instrumental work made Type O Negative a defining force in Gothic/Doom Metal, earning them a large following around the world. In my opinion still nowhere near the amount of attention and praise Type O Negative rightfully deserves.

I'm writing this article in remembrance of a true musician, to honor the legend we were robbed of who still had a long successful path ahead of him in his career. Rest in peace, hope you are enjoying your "Halloween in Heaven" with Dimebag Darrell.

http://thrashmag.com/articles/content.aspx?id=12696

 131313131313 131313131313 131313131313 131313131313

Also, Lisa Rose's article in NJ.com offers TON videos too. Here are some highlights from that article:


"People don't get the joke, which is that we think we're the joke," said Steele, 38, on the phone from a Cleveland tour stop.

(Peter Steele) The singer lambastes rap-metal and said his record collection pauses at the mid-1980's.

"I think all recent music sucks, and that includes Type O Negative," Steele deadpanned.

For the full article, please visit:

http://www.nj.com/entertainment/music/index.ssf/2010/04/peter_steele_the_humor_behind.html

Past Discussions Come to Mind

The last few days have been amazing watching the news and seeing all the flooding up and down the East Coast. During the course of these days, we saw bridges washed out, streets flooded to the tops of pole signs and the devastation that homes had gone through with rising waters near flood zones.

It brought me back to a conversations I had with Peter not too long ago. It reminded me of conversations in the past we had together. And, like everyone who really knew Peter could attest, he liked to talk about everything. Math, theories, science, art, mechanics, physics ... you name it and you could have a long thoughtful discussion with him.

To give you an idea of what these conversations could be like:

One day, we were talking about how all cars have motorized windows now. You never see the crank windows. Peter and I were talking about the possibly usefullness of those types of windows. He pondered whether crank windows would be more useful than motorized if perhaps we drove into a lake or drove into a flood zone. With a crank window, even if the car's motor seized, you could still crank the window and climb through the window to safety.

This of course led to if, for some reason, his father's 1970s car drove off a bridge, and hit the water, what would be the best way to escape the car. Would you be able to push the door open and jump out and away from the car plummeting into the ocean? This led to Peter using his mathematical mind to determine the speed of the car times the drop from the bridge, how many seconds you'd have to fling the door open and jump. Or, would it really matter because in the case of a bridge accident, would you just die on impact of the windshield shattering against the force of the car hitting the water.

I remember we discussed this for about an hour, as we figured out which scenario had the best outcome and whether or not it was possible, that if you had an old crank window car, that you could even open it under water. And, if you could open it, what would be the best way to do it ... a little at a time, or would you open it as fast as you could and escape through the window.

It's impossible to explain exactly what it was like to get into a conversation with Peter. It could seem like a trivial thing, but after an hour of talking about it, you ended up with a lesson in physics, a mathematic session and a serious discussion with a man who joked about most things ... except when it came to the matter of the logical mind.

We concluded that if you could keep a car that had crank windows -- it was a good thing for most scenarios -- except driving off a bridge.

It's a good reminder when I drive over the Brooklyn Bridge.

Lucky Number 13

Since we had so much trouble with Blogger yesterday - with the blog wiped from existence - today's post is a bit of a trial as the wheels get turning on blogger again.

Some fans have asked about Peter's preoccupation with  the number 13. From what we've been told by Peter, it comes from a number of things ... of course, as we meantioned in the past, Peter's love of The Munsters (1313 Mockingbird Lane) ... and there's always the idea of the "unlucky number 13." It's interesting to note that in many buildings there is no 13th floor -- something that never escaped Peter's notice.

FearNet posted their top 13 songs/videos that readers indicated where their favorites for their spooky content. They noted one of TON's songs ... see below for an excerpt from A WEREWOLF'S PLAYLIST:

Another icon taken from us too soon, Peter Steele had a unique way with macabre subject matter: behind his ominous bass-baritone voice and brooding stare hid a sly sense of humor and a true empathy for the outsider, making his songs about creatures of the night (both real and imagined) feel inviting and openly sexual. At the helm of his gothic metal band Type O Negative, Steele's only direct approach to the werewolf tale is in this piece from their classic album October Rust, which draws a direct connection between monthly wolf transformation and the menstrual cycle – a theme which would become central to the classic horror film Ginger Snaps. It's also a deeply romantic piece, whose protagonist wants to either cure or partake of his doomed partner's "curse" before a silver bullet ends their love forever.

To find out what other bands were named in this playlist, see link below:
http://www.fearnet.com/news/b23654_savage_beats_2_werewolf_playlist.html

Diehard Romantic Posing

Here are excerpts from a "lost interview" with Peter for The Aquarian during the October Rust release. Enjoy:

~ by John Fortunato, May 11, 2010 The Aquarian

                                  Courtesy of Mark Weiss from the article that ran in The Aquarian

"When I find myself useless by my own standards, I'll take my life. I will take a swan dive off the World Trade Center hopefully on top of someone I hate, " Type O Negative's Peter Steele quipped while promoting his greatest commercial accomplishment, '96's October Rust. Coming on the heels of '93's fascinating Goth-metal breakout, Bloody Kisses, this gloomy rhapsodic follow-up gave the band an East Coast stronghold fortified by Steele's naked Playgirl photos. But Steele never got to end his own life by way of his own hand, as jokingly promised.

You seem to be a diehard romantic affably posing as a loony psycho-killin' Goth rocker.
I am. The Goth term was thrust upon us by the media. People, in general, need to know where to put product. It's like trying to hammer a semi-cirular piece of wood into a circular hole. We kind of fit, but kind of don't.

Do you think because you're a big man with a deep baritone register that you'd have to contrast that image by being incurable romantic? Otherwise, you'd be exploiting what's obvious.
Ah, genetic engineering. I've always been very sensitive. That's always contrasted greatly with my physical appearance. Sometimes people are taken aback by the contrast--which I find pleasing. Someone who's big is expected to act a certain way. But when I act nice--I've become a good actor (insert sarcasm) --people are impressed.

You talk a lot about getting your heart broken in song.
Everyone does, though. Everyone gets screwed over. It's part of being young. I've had many different girlfriends. I prefer tall women so I don't have to bend down to kiss them because I have back problems. The incomplete evolution rears its ugly head. (laughter).

Is 'My Girlfriend's Girlfirned' based on a true romantic tryst?
First, there's the lesbian snicker. Then, there's the comically absurd statement that what people's beliefs are, and what the true situation may be. The song was actually based on a few true life experiences which turned out to be quite pleasant. There are no philosophical implications. It's purely flesh and fantasy. You definitely have to be up for (the menage a trios).

Check out the complete article:

http://www.theaquarian.com/2010/05/11/lost-interview-peter-steele-type-o-negative-circa-october-rust/

In Praise of Storms

If you are on the East Coast of the U.S., you are probably sitting in your livingroom hoping like hell the house doesn't float away because of Hurricane Irene. If you are reading this, you are fortunate to have electric.  Everyone else in the world ... enjoy this Saturday's edition of "For The Love Of Pete's Fans."

Kristen Rezendes writes:

Hello everyone-

I knew I was missing some photos from the night I saw TON in May 2008, so I combed my email and found that I had uploaded all the pics I took from my phone ( this place will not let you take a camera) into my email!

  

To my joy, I found this photo of Peter. I was front row at the fence, as you can see. Its kinda blurry because it was a phone, but you can see everything and its just such a cool photo!

I also have a photo of myself and Johnny, which I think I have shared with you before, but I also caught his autographed drum skin, which I posed with.  It was a great night!  

#####

This was shot by a mobile phone in Wacken 2007

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B6ZWSaa9W7o

Watch For The Eye Rolling

You can only laugh when reporters interview Peter Steele and they don't know how to react when he's joking with them with a straight face. Listen to the very beginning of this piece where this poor little girl from MTV just doesn't know how to react to his opening statements.

What I like about this interview is Peter talks about why he writes music ... what he thinks about getting older ... "I want to be remembered as someone who has helped people with my songs."

It's a 7 minute interview from 1996 that I believe you will enjoy -- taking you into the weekend with some good words to remember.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AyW_eSteRgU

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Here's a live cover of Paranoid. It a good way to end up the week. Turn it up !

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IlTWkoybG5w&NR=1

The Inspirations of Classical Music Gods

Many of you have asked about the creative process of how Peter Steele formulated his songs. I think the only person to answer that question is Peter himself. As Josh, Sal and Johnny have noted, Peter would come into band rehearsals with songs in his heart, the sheet music prepared and the words in his head - any of his bandmates would have seen all that first hand. But it's what happens during these band rehearsals that formulates the songs.

Photo by:  HardRock publisher Marc Villanova

posted by Lorraine Brenner

on Louie Montalvo's 13Casketcrew13 FB page

From the other side, alot of Peter's music came from feelings and life experiences that touched him so deeply. Remember, while he was a big, larger than life guy, just like his lyrics say, he was not made of Steele. There was a very sensitive, sentimental part of this big man that came to life when he took out a pencil and started writing.

Other times, Peter would get a subject in his head that he wanted to talk and debate about - like religion, sexuality, politics, death, life, hate, math - and he'd ask opinions to those around him. He would speak to his mother and father about these subjects. He'd debate his sisters about life's situations and then next thing you knew, what you were talking about with him becomes a song.

In Peter's musical education, there were many turning points that inspired him to take what he loved of rock music and classical music and combine it to his liking. From a teacher in H.S. to a music composition class in college, Peter learned that a song tells a story ... it has passion ... and it provokes some sort of emotion. Peter would come home from college with sheet music written for an orchestra, show it to his mother and play some of it on the piano. It was a great lesson for me when Peter explained how to read music and a bigger thrill to watch him play.

If you wondered why his  songs were twice as long as "standard issue" songs, it's no accident. He loved the way classical music had various parts to it ... the different tempos ... the melody transitions ... and if you listen closely to Peter's music, you can hear the inspirations of classical music gods. He enjoyed creating songs that could run into each other, sometimes beginning the song with a thought, and trasitioning to a feeling, then winding it up with a realization. You can hear the story he's telling you.

It's an honored thing when a person can take a thought process and turn it into a song. That's why my family has so much respect and honor to songwriters because they can take a single thought and turn it into an amazing concert.

When we read the comments from you all, we see what an impact Peter Steele has had on your lives, your music, your relationships -- and in some cases, your own deep feeling and creative expressions.

[[[[[[[[[



So, back to you all. If you'd like to share a little bit of your song writing skills, please do so. I want this blog to be a place for sharing good vibes, deepest feelings, good news and life situations. Never have any regrets.

PS: I think it stands to mention that while any writings done by the Ratajczyk family on this blog are the property of the Ratajczyks, however, your artwork and your songwriting is of course, of your own rights. Please copywright  your material before you put it up on the web. There are lots of poachers out there.

They Put You In a Wooden Box

Written by one of Peter's niece's Marie:

We come from a family of singers. Peter Sr. had a deep baritone voice, quite possibly lower than his son. Nettie sang and danced, and all their siblings are singers, so music was encouraged in our family.

Every Wednesday night, most of the family would flock to Red Hook to visit our Aunt Helen and along the trip, we'd do what other families would do in the car -- we'd sing. Sometimes they were melodies on the radio. Sometimes they were tunes from Bing Crosby and Frank Sinatra ... they were usually songs that could be adapted to various octaves. Sometimes we'd practice tongue twisters -- sort of an old-fashioned rap -- and other times Nettie and Pete would tell stories about life when they were younger.

This next song was taught to us by the younger Peter - like a witch's bedtime story - it soon became a family favorite. I don't know where Peter originally heard this song, but we love it. Enjoy:

If  you see a hearse go by
Then you know that you're next to die
They put you in a wooden box
Cover you over with dirt and rocks
And then it starts
The worms crawl in
The worms crawl out
Into your stomach
And out of your mouth
The worms crawl in
The worms crawl out
Eating your guts
And shitting them out

                                      (-)

Check out this video from Toledo OH 2000

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=693I-s4TblM

Vampires Take Your Tonsils Out

The beauty of being young is that you believe everything that is told to you by other kids, teenagers and adults. Then when you are a teenager, you believe nothing that adults tell you. It's an interesting cycle.

                                                     Thanks JANA for Sending me this sketch

When I was 7 years old, I had to get my tonsils out. I remember being told by my mother that it's a wonderful experience. You go to the hospital. You wear a pink gown. They put you to sleep and when you wake up, you will never have a bad sore throat again.

Nettie told me a great story about how all girls who get their tonsils out get to have their toe nails painted. They get to stay home from school with her. They get to watch cartoons on tv in bed. And you can eat all the ice cream you want.

I was thrilled to get my tonsils out. I was looking forward to it.

Then, Peter sat down with me and told me how the surgery is done

"First,"  he said "they put you in a pretty pink robe. Then you get wheeled into a big room with lots of strangers. Then they turn the lights out and they shine a huge light in your eye. Then they put this large tube down your throat and it sufficates you till you pass out. And then, the doctor is a Vampire. He doesn't use any tools to take your tonsils out. He bites your neck and rips out the tonsil with his large fangs. And then you wake up and spend the next year with a big hole in your neck where your tonsils used to be." He handed me a bulb of garlic and told me to bring it with me to the hospital.

So, I did what any little girl would do ... I cried all the way to the hospital holding onto my bulb of garlic. I cried when they wheeled me into the ER. I cried when they put this large thing over my nose. And I dreamed about being chased by a vampire through the ER with his fangs dripping with blood.

And when I got home and after I looked in the mirror to see if my throat was still there, Peter came into the livingroom to see how I was. He inspected my neck for puncture marks. I showed him that I still had the bulb of garlic with me from the hospital. He laughed, took the garlic from me and handed me a large McDonalds Vanilla Shake.  I don't think he ever really understood how much I believed him about my surgery.

I have one thing to say ... Thanks Uncle Pete for scaring the shit out of me when I was a kid. 

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

Thanks to Gwen Whyte for remembering this Peter phrase:

"At Your Cervix"

The Day Pete Invited Us Over For Pizza & Jack

The great part about FB and the internet is getting back in touch with people who know you as a teenager. (Well, I guess that could be good and bad). Peter Steele's niece, Marie got a reminder recently from her high school friend Debbie about the day Peter invited them down to the basement to watch him create the inspiration for JACK DANIELS & PIZZA.

                                                                   Summer of 1984


Tara, Marie and Debbie were hanging around at Nettie's, when Peter asked them if they wanted to see what he was doing in the basement. He invited the 3 girls downstairs to the kitchen area. He had the sink filled up with water, multiple canned tomatoes were open on the counter, and he had a microphone and a recording machine hooked up near the sink. The place was a mess with tomato pieces and sauce all over the counter. He looked like he was starting to cook something. But he wasn't.

He asked them did they know what Jack Daniels was and how badly it goes with Pizza. Peter started telling them about a time that he was hanging with his friends drinking and eating, until he felt the undeniable tell tale sign that the food and drinks were going to make a reappearance in the form of projectile vomiting. So, that day, he was trying to recreate the experience without having to deal with the hangover.

Peter told the girls to be very quiet. He started the recorder, put his fingers in his mouth and started to make retching noises. Then with the other hand, he grabbed crushed and whole tomatoes in his hand and poured it into the water-filled sink. Between the retching noise and the tomato dunks and water splashing, Peter would try to stifle a laugh.

It took several takes for Jack Daniels and Pizza to get recorded, because the girls couldn't stop squealing and Peter couldn't hold his laughter back. But it was fun ! They also did the recording in the bathroom too, dropping tomatoes and sauce into the toilet while holding the recording device nearby. Peter wanted to see if there was a difference between the sounds between the sink and the toilet. Of course, the girls had to try the retching too (but that didn't get into the recording). Peter used up lots of cans of tomatoes that day, and the kitchen was a watery red mess by the time they finished the recording.

Now, everytime Marie, Tara or Debbie hears the recording, they know they were there for the inspiration. And no one can even go near Jack Daniels without thinking about the afternoon they spent with Peter dropping tomatoes and making musical history.

Love You To Death

Nice Lettering on this Tat from Robert

 in Louisiana. Thanks for sharing

                                                        **************

A Big THANK YOU to Manuela (aka Dark Angel) (aka X-DA-X)  for sharing this very personal story ... From The Netherlands :

Although I saw TON in concert 5 times I never got to meet Pete.

Nevertheless he's been a big part of my life for the past 18 years.

So here's my story, I hope you don't mind me sending it to you, I needed to write it down...

The year was 1993, I was 16 and I was hanging out with some friends at a local poolhall.

One of my friends walked in, handed me a cd and said "here, this is new and I think you'll like it!"

It was a black and green cover with 2 girls....

When I came home later that afternoon I ran upstairs to my room and put my cd-player on loud.

I listened to the album while reading the booklet. And I listened to it again, and again....

This was something I had never heard before..... 

The music went from left to right, up and down and all the way around, amazing!

And that voice!! OMG!!! That voice would make any 16 yo girl melt....

The very next day I went to our local musicshop and bought anything I could find from TON.

Since that day TON has been and will always be my favorite band.

A love was born, never to die....

I have had my fair share of ups and downs in my life and music has always been there for support, to let steam off, to dream, to escape, everything.

I listen to a lot of bands and all kinds of music, here's a very short list of my favorite albums:

Type O Negative - Bloody Kisses / everything

Life Of Agony - River Runs Red

Alice In Chains - Dirt

Sisters Of Mercy - Floodland

Black Sabbath - Black Sabbath   (TON covers are MUCH better though!!)

Pink Floyd - The Wall

My first reaction is always to grab a TON cd. It always fits perfectly, no matter what mood i'm in.

TON was there when i fell in love, when i was in a fight, when i was happy, or drunk, or stoned, or dreaming, or when i was depressed.

TON was there for me when my relationship ended after 4 years and i moved back home.

When I was 21 my father celebrated his birthday 2 days early. Normally we would never celebrate a birthday to early because we didn't wanna jinx it. However that year we did because in the following 3 weeks my parents had other obligations. His birthday was on a monday so we had a big party on saturday. And ofcourse we would joke around a bit, 'if anything happens tomorrow we at least had this party!' Little did we know then..

My boyfriend at the time and I came home around 4 o'clock in the morning. Only 4,5 hours later we were rudely awakened by this incredible annoying noise of the doorbell ringing constantly. It was my sister's boyfriend, we had to come with him because something happened to my father....

Only 15 minutes later we arrived at my parents house but by then my father was already dead of hart failure.

(you can imagine that I will never ever celebrate a birthday too soon again.)

I saw TON live 5 times in Holland and Belgium, sadly I never actually got to meet them.

I came very close 2 times but I missed my chance (which i still kick my own ass for!)

I even gave a heads up to whatever boyfriend I had at the time, if I get the opportunity then I will forget about everything and anyone else!

My current boyfriend, we have a serious relationship since 2003, was really scared the 2 times I went to festivals where TON was playing haha.

I love my man to death, he means everything to me but Pete has always been the prime example of 'The perfect man'!

Last year was a very bad year. On the 15th of february my best friend got the news that they're stopping her treatment for cancer, she died january 10th of this year. On the 26th of march my boyfriend lost his job because his company went belly up. On the 2nd of april 2 good friends lost their daughter, only 20 minutes after she was born. On the 12th of april my uncle died of cancer. And then came the news that Peter died..... I cried the rest of the day. For the next 3 months I listened to TON only. Even though I never met him, it still hurts... because he meant so much to me for 18 years. This year up until now has been mostly about reflecting and remembering, reading For the love of Pete Steele and thinking about friends and family, the ones that are gone but also the ones that are still here. There also was one good thing in 2010. My sister gave birth to her first daughter and my goddaughter. She's only 10 months old but I spoil her rotten hahaha.

For the past 18 years I have listened to TON on a weekly basis, sometimes a little less, sometimes a lot more.I don't think they will ever descent from the number 1 position on my list, I still love it as much as I did in 1993....

So thank you Peter for being a part of most of my life, rest in peace green man.

I will always love you to death and now it's halloween in heaven..... (I could go on and on with wordplay but I won't ;-p)

See you on the other side!

Thank you Ratajczyk family for sharing, please don't stop!

                                                ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

Check out video for Profit of Doom on:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MfzOqZ9f4Jg

That's When It Sucks

Sometimes you never really realize how much you miss someone till you actually reach for the phone to call them and you realize, shit, he's dead. Peter Steele is dead.

Pete's niece Nancy called me last night saying, "I just watched a Lon Chaney silent film with a midget who made believe he was a baby. All I could think of was THIS must be the film that inspired the Bugs Bunny episode with Baby Face Finster."

http://www.thewb.com/shows/looney-tunes/baby-buggy-bunny/4999f340-77ca-4736-b5a7-a212d9ca5b5b

As she was explaining the storyline, we both started giggling and said Bugs Bunny's line at the same time, "FINSTER ... Oh Finster Baby ...there  you are you naughty baby ..."

Nancy went on to say she had to call someone who would understand and appreciate the story ... someone who loved the Bugs Bunny episode as much as she did.

I knew exactly when she said it, that I wasn't her first choice to call. As soon as I thought it, Nancy took the words right out of my mind and said, " Usually it would be something that Peter would call me about or I would tell him ... especially since it's an episode of Bugs Bunny that we both knew by heart."

I smiled through the phone and said "yeah, I understand."  And I did. That's what happens when you lose someone ... you deal with the pain of missing them ... and you go on with your life.

Then all of the sudden, something happens and your natural instinct is to pick up the phone at 3am and say, "Hey Pete, I'm watching Channel 25 and Lon Chaney is on and there is a little person playing a baby who is smoking a cigar." Then you are staring at the phone thinking ... shit ... now who am I gonna talk to who understands me and my humor.

That's when it sucks.

But, I bring this up because it's a good Bugs Bunny episode. One of Pete's favorites. In fact, it's a phrase he'd use all the time. Finster ... Finster Baby ... When we weren't watching the episode together as kids, Peter would use that Bugs Bunny phrase to talk to kids and refer to babies as Finster. He loved to use his Bugs Bunny voice and tell jokes.

It's Friday ... go do something crazy ...  I'm gonna go surf the waves  at Rockaway Beach ... Enjoy

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-bUAyMv2yRc
Canada Live Concert