“A huge seller, probably the biggest I’ve ever had. But it was a challenge: CC DeVille was erratic, and we had to take a lot of time to get his parts on tape. He was into drugs at this time, so he wasn’t in the best shape. He tried hard, though.

“The rest of the band did, too – they were hard workers. They knew they weren’t astounding musicians, but they dedicated themselves to being the best band they could possibly be.

“I’ll never forget the one day that Bret Michaels played me a brand-new he had just written. I gave him my acoustic guitar, and he sat down and sang something called Every Rose Has Its Thorn. It was nothing more than a basic country song, but I knew it was a hit – a big hit.

“The guys were very pleased with the production I put to the song. It was a little sweet, a little ‘power ballad-y’ – there were ‘oohs’ and ‘ahhs,’ strings, some Eagles-type harmonies – but it was just what the song needed. It tugged at your heartstrings. It got the band on practically every radio station around. You can’t beat that.”