Carlos Cavazo on New Ratt and Gear

Part 1: Joining Ratt, Writing, Sharing Leads

Carlos Cavazo will probably always be known best as the axeman for Quiet Riot. He was tapped by QR singer Kevin DuBrow to replace the immortal Randy Rhoads in the band, and as far as many knew (thanks to MTV) was “the” guit-slinger in the band. If longevity counts, he definitely was the band’s axeman because he was there for about 20 years.

QR obviously churned out some hits, like “Metal Health” (bang your head), “Cum On Feel the Noize” and “Mama We’re All Crazee Now” – which if you watched MTV or listened to the radio during that era you could probably sing right now.

And although the band sold 10 million or so albums, QR is seldom cited individually as an influence by other bands – even though it definitely didn’t sound like any other band and had some killer players: Rudy Sarzo (bass, who quit Ozzy after Randy’s death), Frankie Banali (killer drummer) and not least, Carlos.

Carlos’ playing might have been a little unappreciated during that “speed olympics” era (even though he had speed), but one things’ for sure: It fit the songs, and it would be tough now to hear any other parts in there. Another reason he might’ve gotten lost in the mix a little is that his tone wasn’t distinct. It was classic ’80s super-saturated JCM800-ish stuff, maybe with some chorus on it.

The bottom line is that Carlos is a darn good player and definitely earned his place in ’80s LA rock royalty. But that’s it for background. Right now, Carlos is alongside one of the acknowledged ’80s guitar greats – Warren DeMartini – in Ratt, which has a good new album out. Interestingly, Carlos brought a the two singles to the band, shares lead duties with Warren (recent WoodyTone interviews of Warren are here and here) and has a much more raw tone these days. For more, read on.

WoodyTone: The two singles are great and “Best of Me” is a classic Ratt tune – did you write it with that in mind?

Carlos: Not really, no. When we got together to discuss this record, we wanted to retain the Ratt vibe and sound with new, great songs. I just wrote a few songs, brought them in and got lucky. What makes it sound more like Ratt is what Stephen (Pearcy) did [with] the vocal melody. Maybe it’s also that I’m from the same era, and Quiet Riot is maybe similar to Ratt in some ways. Or maybe it has to do with playing with those guys for a couple of years before we started writing.

Were you surprised at all at how willing Warren was to let you play lead?

Yes and no. Yes because he was and is the lead guitar player in the band, but maybe no because of who I am. I’ve had a pretty big history and did a lot in my career, so I thought maybe he’d let me open up.

It’s been great for me. I feel really lucky and really blessed to be in Ratt – 25 years ago I never thought in my wildest dreams I’d be in this band. Vinny Appice [drummer] gave Warren my number, and Warren told me he’d had my number for a year before he even called me. I was like, ‘What took you so long?’ (laughs).

I could tell right away [it was a good fit]. Our styles are very similar in some ways. We’re both influenced by many of the same guitar players, and before I started jamming with the band we got together at his house and worked out a lot of things, hung out a lot. It fit together and I got lucky with it.

What’s your favorite tune on the album?

My favorite song is ‘Best of Me,’ not because I brought it into the band but because I think it’s kind of a weird rock song. It’s a really hard song to play live – it has hard guitar parts. Another one of my favorite songs is ‘Look out Below.’ I think it has a good, nasty vibe. I like the feel of that song.

Notable

A couple of interesting tidbits from an interview Carlos did with sleazeroxx.com:

> On joining Ratt: “I did go through an audition process. I think the guys just wanted to check me out…they just wanted to see what I looked like these days. I hadn’t seen them in about 10 years and I could have been 500 pounds for all they knew. Funny story about the audition: As I wrapped my audition the first day, George Lynch and Zakk Wylde were in the studio too. I thought they were there to audition. We were trying to keep it quiet that I was auditioning and I run into those guys. As it turned out they were there rehearsing with their respective bands and they happened to be there at the same time as us.”

> On whether he thought twice about joining the band: “I know there’s problems coming into a band that has been around for 20-plus years. To be honest, I was actually hoping that I’d be picked up by a band from the same era as Quiet Riot. In my mind it would be a great fit to be in a band with guys that are from my era and my group. There’s really no problems – I seem to fit in better with Ratt than I ever did in Quiet Riot I think. To tell you the truth, there are way less problems in this band than with Quiet Riot.”

– Part 1 of 2 –

Part 2 will have SERIOUS gear details!

Category: Carlos Cavazo, Warren DeMartini