POISON

Posiblemente el mejor video de una de las mejores bandas de Rock de la historia.

Bobby Dall - Bass

C.C. DeVille - Lead Guitar, Vocals

Bret Michaels - Lead Vocals, Guitar

Rikki Rocket - Drums

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In late 1982, an ad in the local newspaper prompted guitarist Matt Smith to join singer Bret Michaels, drummer Rikki Rockett (the two met one day when Rikki, a hairdresser, came to Bret's house to cut his sister's hair) and bassist Bobby Dall. After writing several songs and playing local shows, they changed their name from Paris to Poison.

In March of 1984, the unsigned band moved from Harrisburg, Pennsylvania to Los Angeles, California in hopes of making it big. Guitarist Matt Smith decided to leave the band, but he agreed to help find a new guitarist. After over a hundred applicants, the band chose C.C. DeVille (over Slash, of Guns N Roses fame, interestingly enough), and the current lineup was born.

Interestingly, their real names are: Bret Michael Sychak (Bret Michaels), Alan Ream (Rikki Rockett), Bruce Anthony Johannesson (C.C. DeVille), and Harry Kuykendall (Bobby Dall).

After playing LA clubs for a few years, the band was finally signed by Enigma Records, where they recorded their debut album, Look What the Cat Dragged In, in only 12 days for only $23,000. To almost everyone's surprise, the record spawned 3 top 10 hits; I Want Action, Talk Dirty to Me, and I Won't Forget You.

After touring with bands like Cinderella and Ratt and selling over 2 million copies of their album, the band went back to LA to record their follow-up smash hit, Open Up and Say... Ahh! This album outsold the first by millions, selling 5 million in the US alone. Hits off this album included Every Rose Has Its Thorn, Fallen Angel, Nothing But a Good Time, and the cover tune, Your Mama Don't Dance. After a tour which included former Van Halen lead singer David Lee Roth, the band went back to record their third album.

In July of 1990, Poison released Flesh & Blood. Hits included the energetic Unskinny Bop, the sentimental Something To Believe In, the rockin' Ride the Wind, and the slow tune Life Goes On. After a worldwide tour which was recorded, the band released their fourth album, Swallow This Live. This two CD set included all their major hits live plus 4 new studio tracks.

Unfortunately, after the release of Swallow This Live, guitarist C.C. DeVille was fired from the band. He has since revealed that the reason for his departure was a drug and alcohol problem which he has since overcome. To replace C.C. at guitar, however, the band hired guitar whiz Richie Kotzen. The result was an excellent bluesy album called Native Tongue. Despite the amazing music on this disc, it didn't do well commercially because of the drastic change in image and sound. Soon after the tour to support Native Tongue, Richie Kotzen was fired from the band due to personal conflicts.

The next guitarist to fill C.C.'s shoes was another guitar whiz, Blues Saracino. With Blues, Poison recorded another excellent disc, Crack a Smile. However, due to problems with the record company, this album was shelved until its 2000 release as Crack a Smile and More!.

Instead of releasing Crack a Smile, Capitol Records decided to release a Greatest Hits disc to commemorate the band's 10 years of success. The result was Poison's Greatest Hits 1986-1996. In addition to all their greatest hits, this album also included two new songs which were originally meant for Crack a Smile: Sexual Thing and Lay Your Body Down. Unfortunately, this album didn't get enough of a budget for the band to release any new singles or videos. But it did go platinum.

C.C. DeVille rejoined Poison right before the release of the greatest hits collection. The band hit the road for a summer '99 tour, recorded the tour, and released a live album with five new studio tracks in June of 2000 called Power to the People. Soon after, a Greatest Hits DVD was released.