Although Dimebag's murder and subsequent remembrances (including those by people Abbott worshiped like Eddie Van Halen) are given the amount of space they warrant here, the bulk of Black Tooth Grin chooses instead to focus on Abbott's life, which by all accounts was one which was lived to the fullest extent of rock and roll excess and debauchery.
Growing up as a rabid teenage fan of people like Van Halen and Kiss guitarist Ace Frehley in Arlington, Texas, once Dimebag made it himself, he vowed to live the rock and roll lifestyle to the fullest. Which meant the usual rock and roll excesses of partying, strippers, and trashing hotel rooms. And booze. Lots and lots of booze.
In one particularly funny story from early on in Pantera's career (that even comes with a picture), the band feels it's their sacred rock and roll duty to destroy one hotel room, but are still too poor to risk having to pay for the damages. So they instead take pains to make sure the lampshades are crooked and all the pictures on the wall are knocked askew.
As the fame of his band rises though, so does Abbott's need to behave like a "real rocker" at all times. You rarely see him without his guitar or a drink in his hand. The Dimebag drinking stories were already the stuff of legend of course - you literally couldn't meet this guy without spending hours or even days subsequently downing shot after shot with him.
But what also emerges here is a picture of Abbott as a genuinely nice guy, who never lost sight of things like family or of his inner sixteen year old rock fan. This is a guy who even after making it big himself, had Ace Frehley sign his chest and then had the signature made into a tattoo.
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