‘That Metal Show’ Recap: Andrew Dice Clay + Herman Rarebell Talk Axl Rose, Drummers and More

Last night's episode of 'That Metal Show' was quite a rhythmic and comical one. That's because comedian (and one-time aspiring drummer) Andrew Dice Clay and ex-Scorpions kit minder Herman Rarebell were the guests. While you might, for a hot second, wonder why Dice was appearing on a metal show, remember, the comic always adopted a rock star's posture and that show co-hosts Jim Florentine and Don Jamieson are stand up comics, as well. He also had a great discussion about rhythm keepers with Rarebell.

Rarebell was the first guest, speaking about his upcoming memoir, 'And Speaking of The Scorpions.' Rarebell, AKA 'Herman ze German,' said the book details his life as a Scorpion and after; he left the band in 1995. He was fun and loose during his chat, as evidence by his bright purple and pink shirt, which was left half unbuttoned! He reminisced about the the band's rise to fame, from playing clubs to opening for AC/DC to headlining in 1984. One of his interesting conversational quirks was that he said said years in long form -- 1984 was "nineteen hundred and eighty four" and so on.

Additionally, it was Rarebell's ability to speak English that made him such a crucial member of the band in those formative years. He didn't just provide rhythmic backbone. He said, "In 1977, I was the one in the band who spoke the most English. When we did 'Taken By Force,' I wrote the lyrics. The record company said, 'Get this guy to write more lyrics.'" Rarebell also wrote the seminal 'Another Piece of Meat' and acknowledged that there were two musical factions within The Scorpions when he joined the band, saying, "[Guitarist] Rudolf [Schenker] and [singer] Klaus [Meine] were playing melodic hard rock and thank God we chose [to go with] that."

He also recalled the period where Meine was sidelined for nine months, nursing his vocal cords when '80s vocalist Don Dokken stepped in and assisted by doing scratch vocals to help the band keep the writing process going. He recalled, "Don was a great help, singing guide vocals so we knew where they should be, but Klaus' voice could not be replaced."

Even though Rarebell exited the band a while ago, his relationship with the remaining members is fine. He thinks the retirement is a good idea, even though the band is still releasing material despite announcing their swan song album and tour! "It is a very good idea. It is time for something new," he said, hinting that you may just see him doing something else and possibly with his ex-bandmates soon.

When Dice hit the stage, he was wrapped in a leather jacket and bedazzled jeans, looking like the part of rock star.

He said that rock star positioning has always been intentional for him, admitting, "I wanted to do something in comedy that was never done before. When I started doing stand up comedy, comics bored me to tears. I could only watch a few minutes. If I am going to do this kind of thing, I want to do it in a way it's never been done. I started out as a drummer, I watched bands like Scorpions and Elvis. That's where the sideburns came in."

Dice also shared the fact that one W. Axl Rose got him to come back to the stage at one point. "I stopped doing the arena thing because it was claustrophobic," Dice recalled. "Then Axl called me and said, 'Dice, I want you to do the Rose Bowl.' I said, 'No, I can't take the crowd around me.' He told me, 'Dice, look at the sky. You are going to be outside.' This is coming from Axl, making sense like that. I did it and I coulda done an hour like that." Hey, when Axl offers advice, you take it, folks.

Then Dice and Rarebell talked drummers, heatedly discussing the hand and footwork of Carmine Appice, Keith Moon and John Bonham. Dice admitted he never pursued drumming since he "didn't have the feet for it," but he sure could talk about the flash and style of the aforementioned drummers.