So you don’t remember Heaven?
Chances are you heard them, thinking it was AC/DC, or possible Krokus, since Krokus sounded like AC/DC with their first U.S hit, “Burning Bones.”
The similarity to AC/DC was no accident as Mark Evans, the bassist for the AC/DC albums High Voltage, TNT and Dirty Deeds Done Dirty Cheap, was the founder of Heaven. Sadly, it seem Evans left the band too soon, as his ex-bandmates became international stars with 1979’s Highway to Hell.
Heaven made their international debut with the Columbia Records’ effort, Bent, followed by 1983 sophomore effort, Where Angel Fear to Tread; with that album they scored an early MTV video hit with “Rock School” that sported appearances by Lita Ford and Deep Purple’s Glenn Hughes.
By the time of their final album, former Talas guitarist Mitch Perry joined Heaven. Unfortunately, beating out Guns n’ Roses on a hard rock cover of Bob Dylan’s “Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door,” which again, gained MTV airplay, wasn’t enough to turn the 1985 album of the same name into a hit. Meanwhile, Perry’s old boss, Billy Sheenan, did alright with his gigs in David Lee Roth and Mr. Big.
Mitch Perry remained active in music with his memberships in the Michael Schenker Group (ex-UFO/Scorpions), as well as Badd Boyz with ex-Rough Cutt and Quiet Riot vocalist Paul Shortino and bassist Sean McNabb of Quiet Riot and Great White. When Shortino the band, Perry and McNabb recruited ex-L.A. Guns vocalist Ralph Saenz and became the 7% Solution. Mitch Perry eventually moved onto the Edgar Winter Group, and issued a 1999 solo album, Better Late than Never.
So, what happened to Mitch’s old bandmate, Paul Shortino? He made his acting debut as Duke Fame in This Is Spinal Tap. And Spinal Tap . . . and not Heaven . . . are releasing movies and new albums in 2025.
The fates of rock and roll, keep rolling!
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