Dee Snider has become a prominent figure as a songwriter and metal vocalist throughout his career spanning 40 years. He initially appeared with Twisted Sister on the debut album ‘Under the Blade’ and started to serve as the band’s lead vocalist and primary lyricist. In 1988, he formed Desperado following Twisted Sister’s disbandment. Later, the vocalist also established Widowmaker in 1991, and he released several albums like ‘Bloodied But Unbowed’ and ‘Blood and Bullets’ with these bands.
In 1999, Twisted Sister released the compilation album ‘Club Daze Volume 1: The Studio Sessions.’ However, they did not enter the studio to create new materials during that period. In the early 2000s, Snider focused on his other projects and became the morning show host of ‘Dee Snider Radio.’ Even though he did not consider releasing a new album, ‘Never Let the Bastards Wear You Down‘ came out. While this album pleased his fans, he had some regrets about the recording process of it.
Dee Snider Had Some Regrets About ‘Never Let the Bastards Wear You Down’
The album came out as Dee Snider’s solo debut album on August 22, 2000. It included the unrecorded songs he wrote for his bands Twisted Sister, Desperado, and Widowmaker. Many fans were content to witness his solo style with this album, while some music critics defined this record as ’80s anthemic pop-metal.’ Along with the songs like ‘Hardcore (Lemmy’s Song) and ‘Call My Name,’ the album also features ‘The Wanderer’ written by Ernie Maresca.
Snider chose this album as the worst record he has made during a 2021 interview with Louder Sound. He stated that a record company followed him to work, but he did not want to enter the studio at that period as he focused on his radio and movie works. Afterward, it turned into an offer Snider could not refuse. The vocalist collected all the work he had written for his bands that had not been released and accepted the offer. However, Dee expressed his regret about not putting his ‘care and heart’ into this work during its recording sessions, although the pieces were excellent.
Dee Snider revealed the worst record he made:
“‘Never Let the Bastards Wear You Down.’ I wasn’t recording then, but a company wanted me to do something and pursued me relentlessly. Made me an offer I couldn’t refuse. I had all these out-takes that I hadn’t used for Desperado, Widowmaker, Twisted Sister. So I said, ‘F*ck it, okay.’ I went in there with a group I was playing with, the SMFs, and we just banged it out. I phoned it in, you know? The songs were great, but I didn’t put any real care or heart in it, regrettably.”
You can listen to the album below.
