Former Twisted Sister frontman Dee Snider has achieved a lot in his time, reaching heights many could only dream of. Snider is famed for the force of his vocal delivery, supplemented by an eye-catching aesthetic in his heyday, complete with colourful makeup and a knot of tightly curled blonde hair. Always standing out from the crowd, this unfettered character continues to make him a sage voice on all things musical, despite the makeup being absent for years.
As well as hitting many critical and commercial heights with Twisted Sister – one of the highlights of 1980s heavy metal – thanks to their knack for writing anthems and Snider’s penchant for slapstick humour, the frontman has also followed up his musical exploits with equally as storied extra-musical ones. Famously, Snider solidified his standing as one of the greats in the 1980s when he fought in the war against censorship in music. He teamed up with the unlikely allies of John Denver and Frank Zappa to battle Tipper Gore’s notorious body, the Parents Music Resource Center (PMRC).
An undisputed hero, Snider continues the good fight to this day, with his comments on an array of topics utterly fascinating. In 2021, he gave one of his most engaging interviews to date with The Metal Circus TV and listed his five favourite albums of all time. Naming classic titles by acts such as Sex Pistols and Queen, Snider made it clear that he loves all good guitar music.
One outfit that he professed his love for was Irish rockers Thin Lizzy, with Snider choosing their 1978 live double album, Live and Dangerous. One of rock’s most revered live records, it captures their late frontman Phil Lynott and the rest of the band at the peak of their powers.
Snider explained: “One of the greatest live albums of all time. That’s what I have to have with me, we’ve got the best of all of Lizzy’s records, incredible performances, incredible playing, and it’s just a treat, just so many flavours on that record too.” Elsewhere, when speaking to PopMatters in 2020, he again mentioned the album: “Thin Lizzy’s Live and Dangerous is one of my desert island albums.”
In July 2020, a fan tweeted Snider, asking him if he remembered a German show in the early 1980s where Twisted Sister played with Thin Lizzy and if he ever met Phil Lynott. He responded: “You bet! That was Thin Lizzy’s last show ever, and every band the bill was on stage watching.”
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