Rock n roll was under
attack during the mid '80s. As the music got more
theatrical and provocative and MTV gave it a
national platform, America's youth
screamed for more. It was obvious that pop
music was experiencing a revolution it hadn't seen
since Elvis swiveled his hips on the Ed Sullivan Show. This scared the hell out of
conservative Reagan era baby boomers so much, politicians and
their wives, mostly the wives, attempted to clean up
the music industry. That's when Dee Snider
of Twisted Sister stepped up and showed the world
how ridiculous and un-American these attempts at
censorship were. Today, we're going
to take a look at the day Dee Snider of Twisted
Sister outclassed US Congress. But before we get started,
take a second to subscribe to our channel, Weird History. If you hear or see something
you like, leave a comment or just tell us what
unusual music stories you'd like us to cover next. Now I want to rock, rock. On September 19, 1985,
the United States Senate held a hearing where
representatives from the Parents
Music Resource Center, also known as the PMRC, made
of senators Paula Hawkins, Al Gore, and others,
testified before the Senate Commerce, Science, and
Transportation Committee on-- And quote, the subject of
the content of certain sound recordings and suggestions that
recording packages be labeled to provide a warning to
prospective purchasers of sexually explicit or other
potentially offensive content, unquote. Their beef, they thought
music with explicit lyrics were too accessible
to their kids. And, no, they were not
going to take it anymore. They wanted record companies
to label their albums with ratings similar to how
movies use the MPAA rating system. The rock community, made
up of musicians and fans, saw this as censorship
and segregation. And they thought they
were so condescending, their gall is never ending. Twisted Sister. They weren't going to
take it without a fight. I want to rock. That's when Dee
Snider stepped in. Not only did he become the
powdered face of rock and roll but its savior with a
grace and intelligence that no one was expecting. Snider didn't ask to
become the spokesman. He was invited by the Senate
to the circus-like hearings to censor rock because
by the looks of him, they thought he'd
embarrass himself. They saw the hair,
makeup, and clothes and thought Snider was an
easy frizzy blonde target. But when Snider
opened his mouth, the Senate realized
just how much they underestimated the singer. Dee's-- [CLEARING THROAT]----
wardrobe, a classic '80s look of cut
off denim, skin tight jeans, snakeskin boots, a little bit
of eye makeup, and, of course, big hair, it wasn't an accident. Dee had it all planned out. While John Denver
and Frank Zappa appeared before the Senate
subcommittee in suits and looked fairly
put together, Snider went in the opposite direction. He strutted into the hearing
and a ratty jean vest, a sleeveless Twisted Sister
t-shirt, a studded belt, sunglasses, and a head of
puffy blond spiral curls. He looked like a combination
of Sideshow Bob and solo Stevie Nicks. All three musicians delivered
articulate speeches, but given his
appearance, Snider's well-presented and
meticulous response was a surprise, proving
that neither the PMRC nor the committee should
have expected an easy debate. He also pointed out he
didn't drink, smoke, or do drugs of any kind. What did he do? Snider later said he
knew his message would have more merit if he
kept true to his identity. Snider didn't want to
meet Congress halfway. He wanted them to
make the effort and see beyond their
preconceived and antiquated notions. When Snider talks about his
day in front of Congress, one of his big wins,
according to Dee, is when he got a rise
out of Senator Al Gore. The beauty of the
jab was that Snider used the words of Senator
Gore's wife to do it. In his open testimony
before the Senate, Snider directly addressed
Tipper Gore's contention that Twisted Sister's
song "Under the Blade" was sadomasochistic
and about bondage. The song, according to
Snider, was actually written for the band's guitar
player Eddie Ojeda, who was about to undergo surgery for
the removal of throat polyps. Tipper Gore, however, claimed
there was an underlying sexual message in the lyrics. "Your hands are tied,
your legs are strapped, a light shines in your eyes. You faintly see a razor's edge,
you open your mouth to cry." After deconstructing the
meaning of the song to Al Gore, Snider told him-- Mrs. Gore was looking for
sadomasochism and bondage, and she found it. The room went
quiet for a second, and all you could hear with
the clicks of photojournalists' cameras and a
rumbling of laughter. Al Gore seemed to be
thrown off his game, too, simply replying-- Yeah. And then moved on to a
different line of questioning. Snider later told
the Huffington Post that he enjoyed the raw
hatred I saw in Al Gore's eyes when I said Tipper
Gore had a dirty mind. Hair rock, 1, the man, 0. One of the reasons why Dee
Snider and Twisted Sister were so prominent on the PMRC's radar
was because of the 1984 video for their angst
filled teen anthem "We're Not Going to Take It." Oddly enough, the PMRC
didn't have as much of a problem with the
song's lyrical content as it did with the violent
content of the video. The violence is about as
serious as a Bugs Bunny cartoon but not quite as funny. Snider thought so, too, and
admitted in his opening remarks that it was his inspiration. The video for "We're
Not Going to Take It" was simply meant to be a cartoon
with human actors playing variations on the Road
Runner, Wile E. Coyote theme. Each stunt was selected for my
extensive personal collection of cartoons. Snider insinuated that the
PMRC confused the lyrics with the video when it came
to the intent of the song, pointing out that there was
no actual violence mentioned. Several decades later,
"We're Not Going to Take It" has become an anthem for
Republican and Democrat politicians, teachers
striking for fair wages, and charities like
the United Way. Chalk another one up
for the glam rock. During his opening
remarks, Snider was able to call out Tipper
Gore on one of her lies which she thought would
strengthen her case. According to reports, a few
days before the hearing, Tipper said that she was
repulsed by a Twisted Sister t-shirt that she
had seen recently. Snider highlighted a statement
from Tipper Gore saying you look at even the
t-shirts that kids wear and you see Twisted Sister
and a woman in handcuffs sort of spread eagled. Snider called her accusation-- An outright lie. Telling the committee that-- Not only have we never
sold a shirt of this type, we have always taken great
pains to steer clear of sexism, in our merchandise, records,
stage show, and personal lives. Furthermore, we have
always promoted the belief that rock n roll
should not be sexist but should cater to males
and females equally. He challenged Tipper Gore
to produce such a shirt. And when asked about it
again by Senator Al Gore, the congressman
clarified for the record that the word t-shirts was
in plural, and one of them referred to Twisted Sister
and the other referred to a woman in handcuffs. Snider stuck to
his guns, insisting Tipper was referring
to Twisted Sister before Senator Gore
changed the subject. Mmm, semantics,
another win for rock. There was a point where
a member of Congress called Snider out for
his parenting skills and whether or not the singer
would know which music to keep from his underage son. Snider gave three options. First, he'd look at the cover. Well, quite simply as a parent
myself and as a rock fan, I know that when I see an album
cover with a severed goat's head in the middle of a
pentagram between a woman's legs that it's not
the kind of album I want my son to
be listening to. Right. Second, he'd read the
song list and lyrics. If I read a title
on the back of say if somebody said
Ice Cream Castle, a title called "If the Kid Can't
Make You Come," whatever it is, I realize that's a
sexually explicit song by just looking at the
cover, looking at the lyrics, looking at the-- I should say-- the titles, that
you cover just about all bases. Finally, he'd listened to it. The few albums that do not
express their intentions on the cover or in
the song titles, I think a parent could list--
take it home, listen to it, and I don't think there's
too many retail stores that would deny them the ability to
return the album for something different. Another clear and concise
response from rock, unlike the flimsy
allegations from Congress. We're going to give
this round to Snider. Snider identified
himself as a Christian when he was speaking
to Congress, a fact the committee
members jumped on to try to discredit him. Snider's band,
Twisted Sister, had a fan group that
went by the name SMF Friends of Twisted Sister. Senator Gore asked
Snider about the group and what the acronym SMF meant. Snider replied
that it stood for-- The Sick Mother [BLEEPING]
Friends of Twisted Sister. Is this also a Christian group? I don't believe that
profanity has anything to do with Christianity. Thank you. Senator Gore went on to say-- That-- it's just an
interesting choice because I was getting
the impression from your presentation that
you were a very wholesome kind of performer and that is an
interesting title for your fan club. So how kind was time to Dee
Snider and his accusers. Let's see. As far as the PMRC's
rating system is concerned, an album with a parental
advisory sticker on its cover usually meant more sales
and higher chart positions for all offending bands. In an MTV interview, Skid Row's
lead singer Sebastian Bach even said that his band
used to hope their album's explicit content would earn
them a coveted PMRC sticker. The sticker became
a badge of honor. Dee Snider and his
wife have been together for well over 40 years,
married for most of them, and have four children
who each have gone on to enjoy a successful
and respectable careers in the entertainment industry. Meanwhile, Al and
Tipper Gore separated after a handful of vague rumors
about growing apart and not seeing eye to eye on the former
senator's Hollywood spotlight. There's still lazily married,
but they date other people now. As for the record industry
that back down so easily at the limp threats of
the PMRC in Congress, it's a shell of its former self. Physical albums have
become novelties in a world driven by downloads. Yet warning labels still adorn
individual track listings and albums online. So what do you think? Do you want to rock,
or do you want to rock? Let us know in the comments
below, and while you're at it, check out some of these other
stories from our Weird History.
