On Feb. 20, 2003 in Rhode Island, a deadly fire broke out at a Great White concert after the band’s pyrotechnics ignited the The Station nightclub killing 100 people and injuring 230. A new documentary, “America’s Deadliest Concert: The Guest List,” premiered Sunday on Reelz, and Twisted Singer vocalist Dee Snider was interviewed for the film. Recently, Snider spoke to a New Orleans radio station about his involvement with the film.
“It’s hard to remember and listen to, but a hundred people burned to death, over two hundred were injured, and 65 kids lost one or both parents in a fire in a nightclub,” Snider said. “Great White was playing. And yeah, Great White, they were vilified. Their pyro ignited the building, and wrong or right, they’ve been shouldering the blame for a long time.”
Snider commented on how the documentary is “well rounded” and let Great White singer Jack Russell tell his side of the story. “One of the things I like about this documentary, it’s very well rounded and it actually allows Jack Russell [former Great White singer, whose pyrotechnics ignited the deadly blaze on February 20, 2003 in Rhode Island] to speak. I remember Jack from back when, and we toured together back in the heyday, and now he’s a broken man. And people may say and rightfully so. But let me just say, was it stupid, was it foolish to set off pyro in a small club? Yes. Was it malicious? Not on your life. They would never, ever intentionally hurt any of their fans.”
I remember (Great White singer) Jack (Russell) from back when, and we toured together back in the heyday, and now he’s a broken man. And people may say and rightfully so. But let me just say, was it stupid, was it foolish to set off pyro in a small club? Yes. Was it malicious? Not on your life. They would never, ever intentionally hurt any of their fans.
Dee SniderSnider said the event hit close to home, because like Great White, he had also played The Station after Twisted Sister’s initial heyday. “I had, post-Twisted Sister, gone from arenas to the bars, just like Great White had, and I played The Station nightclub,” he explained. “The DJ, who was called Doctor Metal, he was this kid, and what he did with my show is what he did with Great White — he introduced me and then jumped off the front of the stage into the front of the audience and rocked out, because he was that local guy, that fan. And he perished in the fire. There were so many people. To think that those same people who came to see me were probably at that Great White show as well. So it just struck so many chords. And I got very involved in a concert event to help those people. Troy Luccketta from Tesla, myself … But more than the money we raised that night, it was a deadlock with the lawyers and the courts and the insurance companies for a decade. And because of the attention we brought to the plight of these people, 175 million dollars finally went through to help these people. But the truth of the matter is the scars, literally and figuratively, remain for that community. It’s very tough.”
Russell had previously commented on the film saying: “It is really moving, touching, and it’s a beautifully shot piece of film. It lets you know how beautiful music is and how music can heal everything, no matter what people think. There’s a certain thing in music that is very healing, and it’s helped a lot of people through the aftermath of the fire.”
Russell said he hasn’t been asked about the fire in years, but it still greatly affects him to this day. Great White guitarist Ty Longley also perished in the fire. “I mean, I feel horrible that it happened,” he continued. “I lost a lot of friends that night — a lot of friends. People that I didn’t even know were even there. And people have said, ‘Well, he’s not remorseful.’ And they’ve gotta understand, when all this went down, my legal team, they said, ‘You cannot ever say you’re sorry, because it implies guilt.’ And I’m, like, ‘But I am sorry.’ [And they told me], ‘But you can’t say it.'”
“America’s Deadliest Concert: The Guest List” includes interviews with Russell, Snider, Don Dokken, Lita Ford and Michael Sweet.
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