Brett With Two T 's

My 1989 began at Bowling Green State University with Poison's "Every Rose Has Its Thorn" still in the #1 spot on the Billboard chart. 

Still catchy today, the song extended the reign of 80s music staple, the "power ballad." As their popularity grew, many metal bands aimed to crossover to pop heights by melting teen hearts with romantic odes to the challenges of love. The tunes were often accompanied by videos where the notorious bad boys showed their softer sides with concert footage of themselves looking homesick and drunk: See Motley Crue's "Home Sweet Home" and Bon Jovi's "Never Say Goodbye."

According to Wikipedia, Bret Michaels told VH1's "Behind The Music" that the inspiration for Poison's only #1 song came from a night when he was in a laundromat in Dallas waiting for his clothes to dry and called his girlfriend on a pay phone. Bret said he heard a male voice in the background and was devastated. He went back into the laundromat and wrote "Every Rose Has Its Thorn." 

Awww. If only we all could get a #1 song each time we watched the spin cycle. 

I met Bret at a VH1 Classic event years later. We passed each other quickly, but I was excited to tell him we shared the same name. The only other Brett I knew was Brett Somers from "Match Game."

Bret seemed amused too and asked, "One 't' or two?"

After I answered, he replied. "Ah. I still like you." 

Or at least he think he did. 

Our paths would cross again when his reality show "Rock Of Love" dominated VH1's ratings. But that's a whole other book. 

Go on, throw your Bic lighter up in the air. I know you want to.