Great White
Great White | |
|---|---|
| File:GreatWhite2006.jpg | |
| Background information | |
| Origin | Los Angeles, California |
| Years active | 1981 - Present |
| Members | Jack Russell- Vocals Mark Kendall- Lead Guitar Michael Lardie- Keyboards Sean McNabb- Bass Audie Desbrow- Drums |
| Past members | Ty Longley- Guitar (2000-03) (Deceased) Tony Montana - Bass (87-92) Gary Holland- Drums (82-86) |
| Website | www.mistabone.com |
Great White is an American blues-based rock and heavy metal band. Great White formed in 1981 in Los Angeles, California under the name Dante Fox. Their sound is notable for its similarities to Led Zeppelin: Great White singer Jack Russell's vocals are often also very similar to Robert Plant's distinctive wail. Great White were managed for a significant amount of time by Alan Niven (he also co-wrote with them), who also notably went on to manage Guns 'n Roses. Great White are still creatively active, and still tour. Musically, they are known primarily for their hit "Once Bitten, Twice Shy", a cover version of a song written by Ian Hunter. In 2003, Great White received attention due to their involvement in the The Station nightclub fire, which led to the deaths of 100 people in West Warwick, Rhode Island.
The 1980s
Great White started life as Dante Fox, playing their first gig in 1981 at The Troubadour in Hollywood. Template:Sample box start variation 2 Template:Multi-listen start Template:Multi-listen item Template:Multi-listen end Template:Sample box end After recording several demos, they took on Alan Niven as manager, Niven having worked for independent distributor Greenworld (which dealt with Mötley Crüe's debut self-release) in Torrance, California. Greenworld released Great White's eponymous debut in 1984. Shot in the Dark, their follow-up independent release, marked the arrival of drummer Audie Desbrow who replaced original drummer Gary Holland. By the time Capitol Records signed the band and reissued Shot in the Dark, keyboardist-guitarist Michael Lardie had come aboard. After the release of Shot in the Dark, Great White hit the road with Dokken and was on the verge of even bigger success.
The band hit the mainstream in 1987 when they released Once Bitten.... "Once Bitten..." was certified platinum in April 1988. The album featured some relatively successful hit songs - "Rock Me", "Lady Red Light", and "Save Your Love". Template:Sample box start variation 2 Template:Multi-listen start Template:Multi-listen item Template:Multi-listen end Template:Sample box end The band followed up with ...Twice Shy in (1989; see 1989 in music). The album included their biggest hit, Once Bitten, Twice Shy for which they received a Grammy Award nomination for Best Hard Rock Performance. The album was certified platinum in July 1989 and then double platinum in September of that same year. The model Bobbie Brown (also known for being in Warrant's "Cherry Pie" video) appeared in the video for "Once Bitten, Twice Shy". They finished off the 80s touring in support of "...Twice Shy" and with some larger bands, such as Bon Jovi.
In 1990 a heavy metal video called "HARD N HEAVY" containing music, concert footage and interviews was released. The video included Slash and Duff from GNR appearing with the band at a "Children Of the Night" Benefit concert in LA for abused homeless children, the performance helped raise money for housing[1][2]. Both bands shared the same manager.
The 1990s
The band continued into the next decade performing "House of Broken Love" on the American Music Awards in January 1990. That spring, Great White embarked on their first tour of Japan. They soon returned stateside for the Memorial Day weekend festival, dubbed The World Series of Rock, which featured Whitesnake, Skid Row, Bad English, and Hericane Alice. Great White recorded two more albums for Capitol — Hooked, which was certified gold, and Psycho City, which is to this day considered by many to be their most underrated effort. In support of Hooked, Great White toured, completing a headline tour, a guest slot with the Scorpions, and trips to Europe and Japan. Psycho City was followed by a U.S. tour with KISS.
Although Capitol issued a "Best Of" compilation in 1993, Great White had already departed the label to begin work on their next studio release, Sail Away. Great White spent a grueling seven straight months on the road headlining clubs. According to Lardie, it was "the longest stint we ever did without a break." Great White kept up the pace once Sail Away was released on Zoo Records in 1994, touring the country several times over the following year and a half. Their next release, Let It Rock, was released through yet another label, Imago, in 1996.
In 1999 the band released Can't Get There From Here and embarked on a successful tour with Ratt, Poison, and LA Guns. The Album featured the single Rollin' Stoned, which managed to chart on the adult rock charts.
The 2000s
The Breakup
In a memo dated January 20, 2000 Mark Kendall announced he was leaving Great White [3], shortly thereafter both Audie Desbrow and Sean McNabb left Great White. Desbrow, clearly very unhappy with the financial state of the band posted a tirade on his website lambasting Jack Russell and Michael Lardie, while claiming to have been "fired" from Great White [4]. Meanwhile, it was rumored that Sean McNabb was fired for going to management and asking to see the books [5]. Despite only having one original member left, the band announced plans to begin work on a new album in late 2000. [6] Early in the process, some of the new songs were played for John Kalodner at Columbia Records. It was mutually agreed that the "magic was gone" and the band decided their heart was not in the recording process. They subsequently left Columbia Records and discontinued work on the follow up album. [7] On November 5, 2001 Jack Russell announced the end of Great White, stating that he was moving on, and that Great White would play one final farewell show on December 31, 2001 at the Galaxy Theatre in Santa Ana, CA. [8] Both Kendall and McNabb rejoined the band for the farewell show and a live CD entitled "Thank You... Goodnight" that was recorded and released by Knight Records.
Jack Russell's Great White
In late 2002, in part due to his failure to attract good audiences while on the road with his solo band, Jack Russell contacted Kendall, who himself was struggling to gain an audience on his own [9]. Kendall agreed to play some dates with Russell's band, allowing Russell to use the name Great White once again[10]. Billed as "Jack Russell's Great White", the tour was to consist primarily of classic songs from the Great White catalog with some of Russell's solo work mixed in. Eventually, more dates were added and the tour extended through the early months of 2003[11]. Though the media referred to the band as "Great White" following the tragedy in Rhode Island, the band was officially performing under the moniker of "Jack Russell's Great White" at the time of the incident [12]. It's unclear when the band began officially going by "Great White" again, but it is possible that the intense media coverage surrounding Great White caused the band to simply return to their original name in order to avoid confusion during the tours that followed.
The Station Nightclub Fire
It was a disaster that brought Great White into the limelight again. Pyrotechnics used by the band's crew sparked a fire in a Rhode Island nightclub on February 20, 2003, killing 100 people including the band's guitarist, Ty Longley. A spray of sparks produced by a set of devices called gerbs, designed to ignite a controlled display of sparks, ignited the foam soundproofing material behind the stage. The band was playing the song "Desert Moon" when the fire erupted [13]. The band toured in support of the victims and families of The Station tragedy.
The Reunion
Talk of a reunited Great White began in a 2004 interview where Jack Russell told Metal Express "I spoke with Michael [Lardie], we threw that around a bit, and thought that sounds like a cool idea, it'd be fun. I'm pretty positive it's gonna happen … probably next year... We talked to some other people, and [former drummer] Audie [Desbrow] would not be a person I would want to play with ever again in my life. There were some bridges burned there that I just can’t forgive, and I’m a very forgiving person. I just can’t let that one go. I have to stand up for myself...". [14] Russell's stance towards Desbrow seemed to have changed course by 2006 when he told Mitch Lafon "I talked to Michael Lardie the other day and he is into doing it. I just want to get hold of Tony Montana and Audie Desbrow. I think that would be very special for our 25th anniversary tour to have the same guys...we haven't played together in a very long time." [15]
Later in 2006 guitarist Mark Kendall officially announced that Great White has re-formed with its original members. Kendall and Russell have written 15 new songs for an as-yet untitled album to be recorded in Los Angeles and Salt Lake City by year's end. [16] Russell described the album saying “It'll be rock. Great White is what it is. We never try to step out of our box and say ‘OK, let’s be something else because this is current and cool and hip.’ That’s just selling out and I would never do that.”[17] The reformed lineup of Russell, Kendall, Michael Lardie, Sean McNabb and Audie Desbow played their first date together in over 5 years on January 27, 2007 at the Keyclub in Hollywood, CA performing at the Harpseals.org Benefit Concert for the Seals 2007. [18] While the band's official website confirms a 25th anniversary tour, current band manager Obi Steinman has stated that no other dates have been booked. Steinman notes that the band has 11 songs written (down from the 15 mentioned by Kendall in late 2006) and plans to begin recording the new album in February of 2007. [19] They will be having a concert at the win-river casino (redding, CA) on June 2 2007