Without a doubt, the 1980s was the most delightfully dangerous era in music history, thanks to the rise of Hair Metal. Now, that legendary and infamous era in rock music gets the documentary treatment with Nöthin' But A Good Time: The Uncensored Story of '80s Hair Metal, based on the book of the same name by Tom Beaujour and Richard Bienstock. This three-part series features dozens of stories about sex, drugs, fist fights, and everything else that made the Sunset Strip the ultimate destination for rock and roll enthusiasts back in the day.

Director Jeff Tremaine is no stranger to the freewheeling, "anything goes" nature of rock and roll culture, having cut his teeth as co-creator of Jackass, the legendary MTV series starring Johnny Knoxville, Steve-O, and other daredevils with presumably outrageous insurance s. More recently, he directed the feature film adaptation of The Dirt, based on the autobiography of the most legendary hair metal band of them all, Mötley Crüe.

In anticipation of the September 17 premiere of Nöthin' But A Good Time: The Uncensored Story of '80s Hair Metal, Screen Rant interviewed director Jeff Tremaine about his work on the series. He talks about the interviews he conducted with both on-stage legends and the hard-working, behind-the-scenes people who did their best to keep the train from flying off the rails, so to speak. He also discusses the magic of the 1980s music scene and why social media and the internet have hindered the chance of a resurgence. Finally, he dishes on whether or not we've seen the last of Jackass.

Jeff Tremaine Breaks Down The Renegade Energy Of Hair Metal

"The early bands, for sure, were just winging it, trying to figure out what they're playing."

Screen Rant: A few years ago, I visited my brother in Ukraine. We were hanging out with a couple of his friends and they were like, "We've got Americans here. Let's watch something American!" We watched [a Jackass movie], and they were like, "We f***ing love Jackass." So in case you didn't know, Jackass is America's cultural export to Ukraine.

Jeff Tremaine: We did a press tour for Jackass Forever, and I was in Berlin, and they were getting a lot of refugees coming over from Ukraine. And I got to meet a couple that just loved Jackass and they were really cool. So it was nice to meet them.

Anyway, let's talk about hair metal, rock and roll. You know, it's not like, you know, how like Prog became like heavy metal and thrash metal to the extent with those crazy complex riffs. And I'm like, I don't want to have to have an abacus in order to play rock and roll, you know? And then hair metal is like, you know, from that glam power pop, even bubblegum...

Jeff Tremaine: It's funny, because it doesn't really all deserve to be put in one box, right? I cover Mötley Crüe all the way to Trickster and Guns N' Roses. Do they all fit in the same box? I don't know. Maybe. It's all good rock and roll and a lot of it was born right here, off the Sunset Strip. That was what we were kind of covering. But it's all been put in a box called Hair Metal.

This is a really approachable series. I know people who like actively dislike this era of music. But there's so much like good stuff. Even if you still aren't going to want to listen to Shout at the Devil, you're going to have a good time with these stories, these vignettes, these great little, like, "on the road" stories told by the people who were there.

Jeff Tremaine: Well, it was one of the loudest, craziest times, and scenes of music. And it lasted 10 years. But it was outrageous. Like looking back on it, it looks outrageous. The whole everything about it! But it's an era that probably won't happen again.

What's really interesting to me about that era, it feels like maybe the last era, even though it was so visual and so of its time or like, but it still feels like, at the start, it's young people playing what they want to play and it kind of lines up with what is hip, what's cool. And I know pop stars today who play music that's not the kind of music that they played right before they got signed. But because they got signed, they have to play this kind of music.

Jeff Tremaine: I mean, I'm sure there's some of that we sort of cover. There is some of that, where these bands are sort of starting to feel manufactured, right? It's not from the soul. It's from, "Oh, this will get me famous, you know, that's my goal." But the early bands, for sure, were just winging it, trying to figure out what they're playing. Like, Mötley Crüe is just playing what they want to play and figuring out their stage show. The same with Ratt at the time, same with Wasp. You know, I love the old days of this scene where the stage shows were outrageous and their behavior was outrageous off the stage. I'm attracted to that kind of stuff.

Director Jeff Tremaine Praises The Various Guests Of His Hair Metal Documentary

"When I read the book, some of the best stories were from the A&R guys like Tom Zutaut or Alan Niven"

I forget who it is, but you ask them about the stuff that they've seen. They're like, "Oh, yeah, I've seen some things." And you're like, "You want to tell us about it?" Maybe I need this as an interviewer myself, but how do you finesse those answers out of them?

Jeff Tremaine: It was definitely much more about making a connection with them and earning their trust. I had to show them that I'm coming at this from a place of love and respect. I really do respect these guys and their craft. But I do want to hear the crazy stories, because I'm attracted to that, too! So it's winning them over and just having a connection with them. And then it slowly unfolds, like, sometimes. But Tom Werman was never going to tell me the (laughs) atrocities that happened. He would confirm that crazy stuff definitely happened in the recording studio, but he wasn't going to tell. But other people, some others don't give a s***, they'll tell you everything!

Yeah. You got some great, great guests to appear. Was there anyone who you who didn't return the call or who was like, "I don't know about this?"

Jeff Tremaine:Yeah, a few for sure. But we got most of who we wanted. It's because it's not all about just the big artists. To me, when I read the book, some of the best stories were from the A&R guys like Tom Zutaut or Alan Niven, the manager of Guns & Roses and Great White, or, you know, that guy, Tom Werman, the record producer. He's awesome! They're all part of it, you know, and. And they've seen all the craziness.

Was this something that you've always wanted to do, or did it kind of emerge after The Dirt? Were you like, I kind of want to do the whole scene?

Jeff Tremaine: It wasn't me wanting to do any more with Hair Metal. It was my old TV agent, he basically left and became a producer at a production company and they optioned the book, Nothing But a Good Time, and he came to me with like, "Hey, would you partner in and help us make this?" And I'm like, "Actually, that sounds fun." I love documentaries. I've made a few documentaries, but this is my first music doc. So I was excited to be a part of it.

It's so much fun. You've got a lot of great music there. I feel like I have a real blind spot for Winger. Maybe it's because of Beavis and Butthead, I don't know.. But I feel like I need to go back and give them a second chance now.

Jeff Tremaine: Yeah, that's what I've done. I've learned to love a lot of bands that weren't ever on my radar, like even Trickster. That's the young guy from New Jersey who formed this little band when he was 12. So innocent and so funny. He's so enthusiastic. And like, I really loved interviewing Mike Tramp from White Lion. I wasn't a White Lion fan, but now I play White Lion because I kind of felt like I became friends with them. Ht was so interesting and just such a good storyteller that I became a fan of their music by meeting them.

The love shines through, that love of rock and roll. And like, you know, it's like when I see... There's a completely different documentary, also on Paramount Plus. I was watching the Elvis 1968 documentary that they have there. And I was just like, he's like a priest. And I don't know if God is real. But I know that rock and roll is real. And all of these guys who you talk to, like they love it. Like, like, I don't know if you see that with today's pop stars. I know rock and roll has its ups and downs in of mainstream popularity. But I think that we listen to this stuff from 40 years ago because they loved it so much and that perseveres.

Jeff Tremaine: Yeah, but I think like if there is a young... I mean, I'm sure there is a young underground scene, right? But I don't see it as much. Seeing live music, to me, and I grew up in the 80s, it was the most important thing to me. Like, THE most. I loved skateboarding, I loved BMX, and I loved seeing bands. It was so important to see them live and be a part of it. And I think it's just not as vibrant as it was, unless I'm just an old dude who's not in touch, and it's happening without me even knowing about it. But there's no "scene" like that, like, like this scene and the punk rock scene. I know there's there's some cool underground hip hop stuff, but I don't see a big scene where all the kids are just having to be at this thing that is as big as what this was.

I'm lucky that I live in New York and I get to go see rock bands, but I think you're right. It doesn't feel like a scene so much as individual bands that you have to follow because it's online, you know, and SoundCloud and all that and people sharing their music that way. So you don't have to go and see it. So do you think that a scene like that can emerge again?

Jeff Tremaine: I'm sure it can. It just needs the right influence and the right home, you know. But I don't know, maybe social media has made it so you can get it out there so much easier. It used to be, you'd have to just grind and be on the road playing all these tiny clubs to make it. But I don't know. I think I'll just end up sounding like an old man! (Laughs)

Jeff Tremaine Addresses The Potential Future Of Jackass

"I'm never going to say it's the last one... But it might be the last one."

Well, last question, very quick. You know, Jackass Forever feels to an extent like it closed the book on that saga. Do you want to do more Jackass movies or Jackass Presents movies, or is the book closed?

Jeff Tremaine: The book's never closed. We made each and every one of the Jackass movies with me thinking that it's the last one, so we put it all out there. I will never say [never], because we keep ending up doing them! I don't know. I'm never going to say it's the last one... But it might be the last one.

Until you literally kill Steve-O.

Jeff Tremaine: There's no plan at the moment to make one. But if next year came around and everyone just... If lightning in a bottle seemed catchable, we might do it. Who knows?

About Nöthin' But A Good Time: The Uncensored Story of '80s Hair Metal

Based on the acclaimed book “Nöthin But a Good Time: The Uncensored History of the ‘80s Hard Rock Explosion” by esteemed rock journalists Tom Beaujour and Richard Bienstock, the series delivers a fresh and shockingly candid behind-the-scenes look at one of music’s most iconic eras. Each episode showcases the insanity and blazing ambition that has enthralled generations of music lovers and continues to influence culture to this day.

Source: Screen Rant Plus