‘Jon Bon Jovi said, ‘I put your CD on and it blew away ours.’ I guess it should piss me off. Like, where’s my cheque?” the story of Black ’N Blue, the band Gene Simmons tried and failed to turn into superstars

The rock band Black N’ Blue.

It must seem like a lifetime ago that a young James Pond (soon to take the far more funky nom du rock Jaime St James) and a handful of school friends put together a college rock act named Movie Star. The band soon became a hit on the campus live circuit but, much like their moniker would suggest, the Portland, Oregon natives were soon coveting the bright lights of Los Angeles and preparing to take their first steps toward their dreams of rock’n’roll stardom. 

“I was actually the drummer in that band,” St James recalls. “Tommy Thayer was on guitar and I think at some point Patrick Young came into the band [bassist Young joined as Movie Star evolved into Loved By Millions]. That was pre-Black ’N Blue. That was the band that set me and Tommy off.”