Gary James' Interview With Lead Singer Scott Thomas Richards Of
St. Valentine



St. Valentine was a big draw in the L.A. club circuit when I interviewed them in 1988. Formed in 1984, they were on the verge of getting signed to a record deal. They'd opened for Guns N' Roses, Jetboy and Lion. Lead singer Scott Thomas Richards was as enthusiastic and honest as they come in the Rock business. Whether they ever got that record deal is unknown to this writer.

Q - Scott, you guys have been kickin' around for quite awhile now. Just how close are you to getting signed?

A - Real close. We did a twelve song demo and spent a lot of money on it. I don't even want to mention how much money we spent on it. We've had a few bites from like Virgin. No complete offers. I guess maybe they want to hear some more stuff. Scotti Bros. was interested for awhile, but unfortunately they're going through a lot of problems with their band Lion. Metal Blade has come out to see us. It seems like St. Valentine is at a point right now where we're the next band in line to be signed up. We blew Warrant, who just got signed to CBS, right off the stage and everybody knew it. We've been here for awhile, but unfortunately we've only been playing since July, '85.

Q - Are you working a day job to keep body and soul together?

A - What I'm doing during the day is a printing job until things really get rolling for this band, which is really starting to happen.

Q - Can you really get record company people to come out and see your show?

A - In L.A., if you call somebody they have to be interested in the demo tape first. If they're interested in the demo tape, you're going to have to call them three or four times to get them to come down. There's always an excuse. They'll come out eventually if you beg 'em. Then, if they like it, they might come out and see another show. Or they might say they'll think about it. Another way is to go internally, which is the promotion of the flyers, getting the kids to come out and see you. If you can start a huge draw and play two nights and draw 1,000 people, that turns a record company right around. They'll snag you in a second. If you can sell out The Country Club two nights in a row, you're practically on your way to getting signed. Record companies will not come out unless you have a huge following and they hear it, the word's been around, or you have an outstanding demo tape that completely blows them away. Otherwise, they're not going to waste their time.

Q - Dana Strum, who produced your demo, is with The Invasion, (Vinnie Vincent's group). He's struggling himself. Why would he bother to help you guys?

A - Dana was working with another band called Burn. Dana saw us blow his band right off the stage on our first show, July, '85. Dana saw us a couple of times after that. He even came back a year later after working with Vinnie Vincent's first album and saw us at another club and said, "Yeah, I definitely want to work with you guys." We in turn said, "Let's go for something." We raised the money ourselves. Dana came in and took over the recording and told us how much it was going to be. We payed him a little cash, not a lot. But he said if we get a record deal and he produced the record album, he would make something like three points or something. I forgot what it was. And we agreed to it. I don't like Dana as a person. I think he's obnoxious, rude and crude, but he knows I think that. I say it to his face. But he's a hard worker. When he's in a project, he's into it. He has what it takes to be a great producer. He's very innovative. Very creative. And I like that coming from a young person like he is.

Q - How do you take care of your voice?

A - Oh, man. I'm telling you, I went to an expensive doctor out here in California. He told me when you sing Rock 'n' Roll you're basically abusing it (your voice) because you're using a lot of attitude. In my band that's what we're using, a lot of attitude in the vocals. What it does is inflame the vocal chords where they're swollen up somewhat. To reduce the swelling in your vocal chords, so you don't lose it, the moisture of a humidifier gets on your vocal chords. It passes over them. There's skin in the way. Your vocal chords are up underneath a piece of skin. So, the steam will get up underneath that. It will put little beads of water on your vocal chords. It stimulates it and shrinks down the swelling. Therefore, your vocal chords cam move around.

Q - I've heard it said that record companies have stopped signing Glam groups and are now looking to the 1990s.

A - Do you want to know the truth? A record company doesn't doesn't really know what they're looking for. And that is the truth. St. Valentine doesn't want to be like Poison. They did what they did and that's it. If you ask Bret Michaels (Poison's lead singer), he'll tell you St. Valentine is a great band. But the problem is he doesn't like me 'cause we were in competition. What record companies are signing now is Guns N' Roses, L.A. Guns. CBS signed Warrant. They're not a Glam band. They've got another band called Salty Dog, which is sort of like a Led Zeppelin cross, but they're Glam. They've got their hair sprayed up and they're getting signed to maybe Geffen Records. So, it's kind of hard to say. In L.A. it's anything goes, good music, good songs, a gimmick. If the crowd's there for us, they'll sign you. And you know something else? It's who you know. And that's a shame. A lot of bands are great out here and they'll probably never be seen. But if they don't know anybody and they don't work on getting to meet people, they're not going to get their foot in the door. Right now, it's dog eat dog out here. Everybody's fighting for themselves. The competition is really a nightmare.

© Gary James. All rights reserved.

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