Nobody on the planet has any doubt that Bret Michaels and Poison had a good time in the Eighties, but in the trailer for a new docuseries, which combs through hair metal‘s decade of decadence, he’s the first to tell you: “In the Eighties, it was an exciting time in music, it was uhmazing.” His enthusiasm pulses through the teaser for the the three-part series, Nöthin’ but a Good Time: The Uncensored Story of ’80s Hair Metal, which will premiere on Paramount+ on Sept. 17.
In less than two minutes, the clip presents the Aquanetted hair, the assless jeans, the satanic panic, and of course the drugginess of the genre. Michaels, Don Dokken, Tracii Guns, and members of W.A.S.P., Vixen, Kix, and Quiet Riot all give quotes about the highs and even higher highs of hair metal. Others who sat for interviews include Ratt’s Stephen Pearcy, Extreme’s Nuno Bettencourt, Skid Row’s Dave “Snake” Sabo, Headbangers Ball host Riki Rachtman, Slipknot’s Corey Taylor, and Jackass’ Steve-O.
Jeff Tremaine, who directed Netflix’s Mötley Crüe biopic The Dirt as well as the Jackass movies, helmed the project, which gave Michaels time to reflect. “We bet on ourselves, and when it paid off, it was awesome,” he says as grainy footage of the band spraying silly string all over the audience rolls.
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The doc arrives three years after the release of the book Nöthin’ But a Good Time: The Uncensored History of the ’80s Hard Rock Explosion by music journalists (and Rolling Stone contributors) Tom Beaujour and Richard Bienstock. The weighty oral history was a New York Times bestseller and made Rolling Stone’s list of the Best Music Books of 2021. Rolling Stone also published an excerpt from the book about the formation of Guns N’ Roses, featuring interviews with their founding members. Beaujour and Bienstock are co-executive producers of the docuseries.
Rolling Stone rewarded Michaels’ good times by placing Look What the Cat Dragged In at Number Two on a list of the 50 Greatest Hair Metal Albums of All Time.