Jan Kuehnemund
Jan Kuehnemund | |
---|---|
Birth name | Janice Lynn Kuehnemund |
Born | Saint Paul, Minnesota, U.S. | November 18, 1961
Died | October 10, 2013 Colorado Springs, Colorado, U.S. | (aged 51)
Genres | Hard rock, Glam metal, Pop rock |
Occupation(s) | Guitarist, vocalist |
Instrument(s) | Guitar, vocals |
Years active | 1971–2013 |
Janice Lynn "Jan" Kuehnemund (/ˈkuːnəmənd, ˈkjuː-, ˈkiː-/; November 18, 1961[1] or November 18, 1953 – October 10, 2013) was an American lead guitarist who founded the all-female hard rock/glam metal band Vixen.
Life and career
Born in St. Paul, Minnesota, Kuehnemund formed Vixen in St. Paul in 1971. She moved the band, along with singer Janet Gardner, to Los Angeles in 1981.[2] The band gained notice by appearing in the 1984 teen film Hardbodies under the on-screen name Diaper Rash.[3] She eventually added Roxy Petrucci on drums and Share Pedersen on bass, the lineup that signed to EMI Records. They released their self-titled debut, Vixen, in 1988. The band toured with the Scorpions, Ozzy Osbourne, and Bon Jovi, and appeared in Penelope Spheeris' 1988 film, The Decline of Western Civilization Part II: The Metal Years.[4]
The album Rev It Up followed in 1990, along with tours with Kiss and Deep Purple. The band's album sales declined and they were dropped from their record label. Vixen disbanded in 1991, but formed again in 1997 without Kuehnemund,[3] while she was working on side project Drawing Down the Moon. Kuehnemund sued and won the rights to the band's name.[5] She then continued the band in 2001 with new members, and toured and released Live & Learn in 2006. Gardner, Petrucci, and Pedersen formed their own band JanetShareRoxyGina (aka JSRG) with guitarist Gina Stile. The group's most well-known lineup did reunite in 2004 to perform for VH1's Bands Reunited.[4]
Kuehnemund died in Colorado Springs, Colorado on October 10, 2013 after a 10-month-long battle with cancer.
Discography
- Studio albums
- Vixen (1988)
- Rev It Up (1990)
- Live & Learn (2006)
- Live albums
- Extended Versions (Live in Sweden) (2006)
- Live In Sweden (2013)
- Compilation albums
- Full Throttle: The Best of Vixen (1999)
- Rare Vintage (2018)[6]
References
- ^ "Minnesota Birth Index, 1935-2002," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:VCNT-C6F : 6 May 2014), Janice Lynn Kuehnemund, 18 Nov 1961; from "Minnesota Birth Index, 1935-2002," database, Ancestry (http://www.ancestry.com : 2004); citing Ramsey, Minnesota, United States, Minnesota Department of Health, Minneapolis.
- ^ Reimenshneider, Chris (October 18, 2013). "Obituary: Jan Kuehnemund - St. Paul rocker led Vixen to MTV". Star Tribune. Retrieved December 21, 2013.
- ^ a b Raihala, Ross (November 11, 2013). "Memorial for Vixen guitarist this week in North Branch". St. Paul Pioneer Press. Retrieved December 22, 2013.
- ^ a b Stingley, Mick (October 11, 2013). "Jan Kuehnemund, Guitarist for All-Girl Metal Band Vixen, Dies at 51". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved December 21, 2013.
- ^ "VIXEN Guitarist Talks About Band's New Lineup". Blabbermouth.net. June 28, 2005. Retrieved December 21, 2013.
- ^ https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/rare-vintage/1388479047
External links
- Jan Kuehnemund at IMDb
- Jan Kuehnemund memorial page at VixenOfficial.com
- 2009 interview at Free! Magazine
- 2012 interview at Love-It-Loud.com, archived at the Wayback Machine
- 2011 audio interview on YouTube
- Final August 31, 2013 audio interview on YouTube
- 1961 births
- 2013 deaths
- American heavy metal guitarists
- Glam metal musicians
- American female guitarists
- American female singers
- American heavy metal singers
- Female heavy metal singers
- Lead guitarists
- Musicians from Saint Paul, Minnesota
- Deaths from cancer in Colorado
- Singers from Minnesota
- Guitarists from Minnesota
- 20th-century American guitarists