Dokken: Rhymes with rockin'

Don Dokken's still doing it into his 50s

By Newt Briggs

There are a lot of problems with being a middle-aged heavy metal thunder god. First of all, there are the kids--even some that you inevitably have to take responsibility for. Second, there are the expenses; after all, leather pants and designer cowboy hats aren't cheap. But worst of all--at least according to Dokken frontman and namesake Don Dokken--has to be the groupies, who seem to get skankier and less dignified with each passing year.

"The other night we were playing Oklahoma City, and a bunch of girls came backstage after the show," Dokken says. "They were total tramps. I mean, they were, like, gross. They were dressed really sleazy, and they were saying f-this and f-that and pulling their tops up and showing us their boobs. They just didn't have any couth or class. We were finally like, `Get out of here,' and we just tossed 'em out of the dressing room."

It was a far cry from the "runway models, Playboy bunnies and Penthouse pets" who used to bicker about which band member they would get to sleep with after the show. Says Dokken: "It'd be like, `I want the bass player. Well, I want the singer. But I wanted the singer. Okay, we'll share him.' It's all pretty good for your ego."

These days, however, Dokken has a daughter who's almost as old as some of the girls who were fighting over his wang-dang-doodle back in the day. The experience has put a new spin on his songwriting--particularly on this year's Hell to Pay. "Prozac Nation," for example, was inspired by a visit to the psychiatrist, and although it sounds like it might be endorsing drug use ("Everybody's getting high today/ Go on and alter your mind/ Fade away..."), Dokken insists the lyrics are strictly in line with the founding principles of D.A.R.E.

"My daughter was getting a little rebellious, so we thought we'd get her someone to talk to," says Dokken. "Right away, the doctor was like, `Well, she's depressed. We'll put her on meds.' Can you imagine? `Like hell you will,' I said. She's a teenager, you know. But that's the solution these days. It seems like there's a pill for every problem. And yet people are only getting more and more depressed. At some point, people have got to face up to their issues."

But if you think dealing with manic-depressive teenage angst is tough, try placating bitter former bandmates. In the '80s, Dokken and guitarist George Lynch combined for some of the era's most ferociously sexy pop-metal, but their relationship soured when Lynch allegedly threatened to murder Dokken. Nowadays, Jon Levin--the band's attorney for 10 years--is plying his trade on the six-string, but Dokken still runs into Lynch from time to time--often with unpleasant results.

"We saw each other several months ago, and we spoke and had a nice conversation," says Dokken. "But then two days later, he said in an interview, `I ran into Don, and I wanted to kick his ass right there on the spot.' He's a very petty human being. You'd think that he would have found some peace by now, but he's so filled with anger."

According to Dokken, Lynch still has not overcome his tragic flaw. "I'm not trying to be mean, but he had a really massive ego. It was just unbearable," Dokken says. "One day, I was having a bad day singing and he told me, `It doesn't matter.' I was like, `Of course it matters. I want to sing well.' And he says, `No, people only come to see me play guitar. You guys are just here to fill up the stage.' I thought he was being facetious, but he was dead serious. So I always tell people that our relationship came down to a disagreement. He thought he was a god, and I disagreed."