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One on one with Don Dokken
By Debbie Rao
March 25, 2005
Dokken is about to embark on an European tour. But before they depart, staff writer Deb Rao caught up with Don for this exclusive Q&A session.
DOKKEN TOUR EUROPE 
4/6/05 Copenhagen, Denmark The Rock
4/8/05 Bassano, Italy La Gabbia
4/9/05 Reggia Emilio , Italy Transavilla Live
4/10/05 Rome, Italy STAZIONE BIRRA
4/12/05 Aschaffenburg, Germany Colossaal
4/14/05 Frauenfeld, Switzerland C4
4/15/05 Madrid, Spain Aqualung
4/16/05 Bilbao, Spain Antokia
4/18/05 London, UK Underworld
4/19/05 Nottingham, UK Rock city
4/20/05 Dudley, UK JB's
4/22/05 Bradford, UK Rio's
4/23/05 Charia, Greece Neoria
4/24/05 Thessaloniki, Greece Hydrogeos
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What will your song list be for the upcoming tour of Europe?
We will be playing alot of songs from the "Hell to Pay" record. We will be playing some other songs we haven't played in a long time like “Dream Warriors,” and “When Heaven Comes Down.” Some stuff that you haven't heard on the American tours. As far as the countries, we are playing England, Germany, Italy, Spain, Greece, Switzerland, and we might be doing two shows in Russia.
Is it worth it to play there? What are the fans like?
Yes, because the Euro dollar obviously is alot better than the American dollar. It is just a different type of people. Different fans, more loyal and dedicated. You need to go to tour there every year no matter what.
Will Dokken be playing any European festivals this summer?
No, we're doing it now to set it up for next year. There is no reason to play any festivals now because we want to wait and put out a new record out and do a long eight month tour.
Now with the music industry being the worst in years. Do bands make more money touring or selling CD's?
Bands definitely make more money touring. If you don't tour nowadays you will starve. Record companies don't pay well. Today selling million and millions of records are over, except for the new wave of bands like Linkin’ Park. Bands of the 80's ,unless you are Bon Jovi or Aerosmith still sell records but those bands who just sold Gold or 3 or 4 million like us have to tour to make money nowadays.
Do you feel as a musician that the downloading music situation is getting better? Is it better for you? Are you making money from it?
Yes, it is better for us because alot of people are not going to Napster now. People go to Apple and download for 99 cents per song. There are alot of bands out there who have put out alot of crappy albums. Their one good song you hear on the radio or MTV. It is all garbage. I know I bought these records. It is just a ploy to spend 15 dollars on a CD just for one song. I think it is a great idea. You pick the song you like, and download and pay a dollar to Apple or I -Tunes.
Will Dokken release a second single from “Hell to Pay”? 
It depends if we get an arena tour this year. We have a few offers so far for an arena tour and if we accept we will then release a second single, and we will do a video. If we don't get an arena tour, we will just do fly in festivals on weekends, and we will spend much of the summer writing for the record.
So there will not be a Dokken Club tour I take it?
No! There will be no Dokken club tour, it is arenas or nothing for us this summer.
What is your favorite Dokken tune?
I don't have a favorite tune. I would say in the 90's my favorite songs were" Too High Too Fly" or "The Maze." In the 80's, one of my favorite songs was "Kiss of Death." As for commercial song, "In My Dreams."
It seems like Sanctuary Records is a good label to be on these days. Many bands of 80's are on this label. How do you feel about Independent Record Labels versus Major Record label?I I think for these times Independent labels are the future. I think in five years, there will not be anymore big labels, because they don't spend time or interest. It is hard to have one label look after 150 bands. It is better for a band to be on a label with just 15 bands. You get more attention. They work harder for you.
Now what about your new solo album? Will there be any ballads on it?
I wouldn't say ballads is the proper word. It just a more mellow album. It is more geared around acoustic guitars, piano, sitars, percussion’s, and orchestration. Stuff like that.
I love your first solo album," UP From the Ashes." Do you feel the record company could have promoted it more? I know the single,” Mirror Mirror" did well on MTV.
They worked very hard on that record, and they pushed it very hard. It did very well. It came out right in the middle of the Nirvana cycle. When the Seattle grunge hit the scene, with bands like STP, Alice in Chains, Pearl Jam, and all those songs, came along in that one year. So from "Up From The Ashes" on, Bon Jovi, and Van Halen all took a back seat, to this new kind of raw, in your face, stripped down type of music.
Any plans for a new DVD soon? I love your last DVD "Live from the Sun. You did an excellent job of producing it.
Our next album is going to be called,” Lightning Strikes Again." It is going to be a record and bonus DVD with footage of our European tour that starts in April. We are filming the whole tour that starts in April. It will be us in Europe just goofing around. There will be footage from our live concerts, footage from traveling to hanging out, us hanging off the Eiffel Tower! Laughter! It will be similar to "Unchain the Night" video. A new version of what the band is like now, who is in the band now. We are taking three video cameras and a camera crew. It will be us waking up, going to sound checks. We are making a little movie about 25 minutes long, a bonus DVD. it will be organic, like you are actually on tour with us just hanging out.
Now I know you were friends with Dimebag Darrell Abbott. Were you shocked to hear of his shooting? How do you feel about club security these days?
Of course I was shocked. I played the same place. It doesn't matter how much security you have, you can be as careful as you want. As we found out on 911. It happens. When there are millions and millions of people out here listening to music, the odds are out of one million people there are thousands of them who are disturbed. Unfortunately, one of these people killed Darrell, and then he killed himself, so we will never know, what was going on in his head.
Now Dokken placed Al Rosa Villa a few times? It was one of the last clubs in the East that catered to 80's music.
Yes. It is pretty sad when you are just trying to make music and people happy. One person has to ruin it for thousands of people that enjoyed him. It is like the guy who killed John Lennon. The world is not made up of nice people.
Don, when you are not touring or playing music, what are some of your favorite hobbies? I can remember back in the day, you use to enjoy race car driving?
Yeah, I don't do that anymore. My hobbies are basically working on cars. I just bought a new toy, an antique 1958 Rolls Royce. It is just a toy.
Is there anything else that you would like to say to your fans here at Glam-metal? Yes! Bands don't make themselves famous, it is the fans that make the bands famous. The fans keep the band alive. My goal is to make music people can relate to. It is not for the glory or the fame, we have already had that. Now it is just about the music.
For more info, check out www.dokken.net
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