W.A.S.P.’s Blackie Lawless recently shared a statement to pay tribute to drummer Steve Riley via W.A.S.P. Nation. He also indicated that he had remorse over Riley’s passing, as he started his words by saying:
“The entire W.A.S.P. family are saddened to hear of the passing of our friend and former bandmate Steve Riley. Steve was a large family. He had several brothers, which from the beginning I dubbed, ‘the Dalton Gang.'”
The rocker then explained the origins of the ‘Dalton Gang’ name he dubbed to Riley and his brothers. He discussed:
“That came from an old Quick Draw McGraw cartoon, and in a fun type of way, they reminded me of some crazy kind of wannabe outlaws. They all loved the name, so it stuck.”
Lawless Praised Steve Riley’s Skills
Lawless then continued by appreciating Riley’s drumming and gave a few examples of the W.A.S.P. hits where the drummer’s sound was crucial to establishing the band’s legacy. He mentioned:
“It was Steve’s drumming you hear providing the steady beat on songs such as ‘Wild Child,’ ‘Blind in Texas’ and ‘I Don’t Need No Doctor.’ Those songs helped cement our legacy, and Steve was a big part of that.”
Then, he paid respect and celebrated Riley’s sense of humor, claiming the rocker could’ve made a ‘dog’ laugh. Blackie pointed out:
“Most drummers have some of the best humor. It’s just the way they are wired, and he was no exception. Steve could make a dog laugh, and that’s no joke.”
Blackie Feels Remorse
After praising and paying respect to Steve’s memory, Lawless also shared how his presence was important and indicated had one remorse about the drummer’s passing. He hinted:
“If you have someone in the band that can come in and break the tension just by being themselves, then that’s a gift that’s sorely missed when that vacuum can no longer be filled.”
He finished off by paying further homage:
“One of the ‘Dalton Gang’ has now slipped, and our hearts are truly saddened. He will be missed. But his individual legacy will live.”
Steve’s passing at 67 was announced on October 24, and the cause of death was reported to be complications of pneumonia.
You can check out Lawless’ words here.
