Songfacts®:

• This song tells the story of a mysterious stranger who comes to town looking for action. He finds it, getting the attention of every young lady he meets.
  
  The song isn't about anybody in particular, just a fictional cool cat the band and their producer Beau Hill devised.
• Ratt distinguished themselves in the hair metal scene with two guitarists - Robbin Crosby and Warren DeMartini - who each came up with lots of musical ideas. Lead singer Stephen Pearcy credits DeMartini for making "Way Cool Jr." work. "Those are Warren riffs," he told Songfacts. "He was just becoming fierce. We were probably the only band that would get away with doing those kind of songs - these songs that swing."
  
  Pearcy also gives props to their drummer, Bobby Blotzer. "Bobby has a great swing when he plays drums. He's not a 4/4 kinda guy. So, when we lay down songs like 'Dirty Job' or 'Way Cool,' I've got to hand it to us, we pulled it off. Because no other hard rock whatever band from LA – call us what you want – they're not pulling that off."
• "Way Cool Jr." was the lead single from Ratt's fourth album, Reach For The Sky. It was a modest hit and the last Hot 100 placing for the band, which broke up a few years later as internecine turmoil set in. In the '80s, the group was just a step below Mötley Crüe and Guns 'N' Roses on the Los Angeles rock scene. They were a big live draw but never had a big power ballad to push them into the mainstream. They remain best known for their first hit, "Round And Round."
• The music video was directed by Marty Callner and takes a first-person perspective as our way-cool protagonist roams the clubs of Hollywood, catching the eyes of the ladies. One of the girls in the video is Ava Fabian, a former Playmate Of The Month who later showed up in the movies Welcome Home, Roxy Carmichael and Dragnet, and in episodes of Married... with Children and The Drew Carey Show.