L.A. Guns
are an American glam metal band whose music is frequently associated with the L.A. glam metal scene which grew up around the Sunset Strip in the 1980s, in particular the sleaze rock subgenre. Guns N' Roses, which once featured three of the original L.A. Guns members, was the most prominent exponent of this subgenre, generally preferring an anti-social image to elaborate make-up and costumes. Today two bands share and tour using the L.A. Guns name: One is headed by Tracii Guns, the founder of the original band, and the other is headed by Phil Lewis and Steve Riley, the singer and drummer of the most successful incarnation of the band.
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History
Founding (1983-1984)
In 1983, Tracii Guns formed the band known as L.A. Guns with singer
Michael Jagosz, bassist
Ole Beich, and drummer
Rob Gardner.
Reformation (1985)
The second lineup of L.A. Guns was formed by
Mau Maus
and
The Joneses
drummer
Paul Mars Black, who switched to lead vocals, and guitarist
Mick Cripps, who switched to bass. They teamed up with drummer
Nickey "Beat" Alexander, who was jamming with guitarist Tracii Guns. This lineup is considered to be the original version of the band. Originally this group was going to call itself
Faster Pussycat
, a name brought in by Paul Black and Mick Cripps. After much debate, this new group re-adopted the name
L.A. Guns
in order to utilize the backing and promotional material left over from the former lineup which had been disbanded for over a year. Tracii left L.A. Guns at the end of the year to play with a Penthouse Pet who was signed with
Atlantic Records. He moved to New York and informed the band he would not be returning right before their record label showcase at the Troubadour in Hollywood. Guns N' Roses were called to fill in for the guitar-less L.A Guns and played to a sold out
L.A. Guns
crowd. Shortly after this show, GNR inked a record deal with
Geffen Records.
Paul Black leads L.A. Guns (1985-1986)
After Tracii left the band,
Paul Black recruited ex-
Dogs D'Amour singer
Robert Stoddard to be the new guitarist. This lineup quickly picked up where they left off. They demoed and gigged in 1985 and 1986, with Black contributing most of the material that would be recorded on their debut album. Several record labels were already interested in signing this line-up but the band wanted a fuller sound. At the end of 1986, after his stint with the former Penthouse model fell apart, Tracii was brought back in to make L.A. Guns a five piece band for the first time. A record deal with
Polygram Records was secured after Paul introduced a song called "Love and Hate." The label wanted this to be the first single. However, the new five piece line up would not survive.
Paul was replaced by
Phil Lewis of the British band
Girl. Mick then switched back to guitar, replacing Robert, and former Faster Pussycat member
Kelly Nickels was added on bass. L.A. Guns then recorded their
eponymous first album, released in 1988 on
Vertigo Records. The gold award debut album spawned the singles "One More Reason" and "Sex Action," both written by Black. "Sex Action" evolved from Black's earlier song "Love and Hate." Black also contributed "No Mercy," "Nothing to Lose," "Bitch Is Back," "One Way Ticket," and "Winter's Fool" to the first record and "Never Enough," the first single off the second album,
Cocked and Loaded
. Black also made many other contributions to the L.A. Guns repertoire which would later appear on a record called
Black List
, which features Black singing the original L.A. Guns songs with the original band, recorded during his time in the band.
Classic lineup (1987-1993)
On the first album's supporting tour, Nickey was replaced by former
W.A.S.P.
drummer
Steve Riley, leaving only two original members. This lineup remained until 1992. In 1989, they released their second album
Cocked & Loaded
. It contained the smash radio and video hits, "Never Enough" and "
The Ballad of Jayne", which helped the album reach
gold, and eventually
platinum status. This was the commercial peak of their career, a point that they would never, ever reach again. The album's song "Rip & Tear" was also a hit. The band also released two home videos coinciding with these two albums,
One More Reason
(1989) and
Love, Peace, & Geese
(1990) and participated in world-wide touring as headliners and as support for such acts as
AC/DC
,
Cheap Trick
,
Def Leppard
, and
Ted Nugent
.
During 1991, the band released their third album
Hollywood Vampires
on
Polydor Records. The album did re-achieve the gold status of
Cocked & Loaded
and their debut album and did spawn a few hits such as "Kiss My Love Goodbye" and "It's Over Now" although it still wasn't as well noticed as the first two albums. In 1993, their first album finally reached gold status as well. Tracii Guns participated in the
supergroup Contraband
the same year. The
L.A. Guns
released a five song
EP titled
Cuts
in 1992 and then in 1995 their fourth album
Vicious Circle
, drummer Michael "Bones" Gershima played on parts of these recording as this was around the time Phil Lewis fired drummer Steve Riley in January 1992. Riley later returned to the band for the successful
Vicious Circle
club tour. After this, the
L.A. Guns
were dropped from Polygram (Vertigo/Polydor) Records. Phil Lewis and Mick Cripps then left the band.
Experimentation (1994-1999)
July 1995 saw Tracii Guns and Steve Riley recruit vocalist
Chris Van Dahl and guitarist Johnny Crypt (ex-
Ripper
, aka Johnny Crystal) after seeing them perform with their band
Boneyard
. Six months into recording sessions, Kelly Nickels left the band and Johnny was asked to switch to the bass to avoid having to seek out and deal with yet another member. In 1996, the new L.A. Guns released their sixth record, titled
American Hardcore
. This new album built on the heavy music from
Vicious Circle
and projected a darker image for the band. They toured throughout 1996 and into 1997 when Tracii let Chris go in hopes of regaining Phil Lewis and the band's former glory. Phil refused, and so Chris was replaced by singer
Ralph Saenz. Tracii, Steve, Johnny, and Ralph toured for the remainder of '97 and in early '98 released the six song EP
Wasted
.
Halfway through the band's 1998 Rock Never Stops tour, Ralph quit to form his own band, leaving Tracii to do another singer change.
Joe Lesté from
Bang Tango and
Jizzy Pearl from
Love/Hate were considered as candidates. Leste would last a week. Tracii and Steve picked Jizzy and quickly geared up to tour. L.A. Guns toured clubs with Jizzy in late 1998 and early 1999 when they released
Shrinking Violet
, produced by former Guns N' Roses guitarist
Gilby Clarke. This release was followed shortly by Crypt's departure.
Reunion (1999-2002)
Tracii and Steve had been talking with their former bandmates, Phil, Mick, and Kelly about a reunion album and tour. When Johnny found out about the reunion he left on February 6, 1999. The reunion album
Greatest Hits and Black Beauties
was released on Deadline Records around the same time as
Shrinking Violet
.
As of September 1, 1999, Jizzy and Chuck were fired from the band as the classic lineup of Tracii Guns, Steve Riley, Phil Lewis, Kelly Nickels, and Mick Cripps prepared to reunite. L.A. Guns set out on the reunion tour in October 1999 and recorded a live album in their hometown of Hollywood, enlisting Gilby Clarke as producer. The album, named
Live: A Night on the Strip
, was released the following year.
After the reunion, Mick and Kelly couldn't commit to the summer 2000 tour, so they were replaced by guitarist
Brent Muscat and bassist
Muddy, respectively.
Ratt and L.A. Guns teamed up with
Warrant for a remainder-of-the-summer tour, which L.A. Guns dropped off in August due to booking problems.
In August 2000, L.A. Guns re-recorded and re-released
Cocked & Loaded
retitled
Cocked & Re-Loaded
on Deadline Records. Mick Cripps again rejoined the band briefly in late 2000 to record an album with the band, entitled
Man In The Moon
, which was released on Spitfire Records in April 2001. Mick played keyboards on the album, but did not tour to support it. Muddy later left the band after a short promo tour for
Man In The Moon
. He was replaced by
Adam Hamilton for the winter of 2002
Man In The Moon
club tour.
In 2002,
Andy Johns was hired to produce the next release,
Waking the Dead
. This album features
Adam Hamilton as the new bass player. Hailed by fans as one of the strongest and heaviest material L.A. Guns has ever recorded, the album features
OK, Let's Roll
- dedicated to
Todd Beamer and the people who rushed the cockpit of Flight 93 during the events of
September 11, 2001 attacks.
L.A. Guns without Tracii Guns (2002-present)
During September 2002, founding guitarist Tracii Guns became very involved in
Brides of Destruction, a new project with
Mötley Crüe bassist
Nikki Sixx. Guns saw the project as an opportunity to recapture the fan and street-credibility he had held in the late 1980s and signed on as lead guitarist for
Brides of Destruction
. In 2004, the new band embarked on a World Tour, and the future of
L.A. Guns
was in doubt until both Steve Riley and Phil Lewis told the
Hairball John Radio Show
that the band would continue despite Tracii Guns' involvement in
Brides of Destruction
.
They had gone through several guitarists since Tracii Guns departed in October 2002. With a new guitarist named
Stacey Blades, L.A. Guns released the covers album
Rips the Covers Off
. The band recorded and released
Tales from the Strip
in August 2005. It is the only U.S> released
L.A. Guns
album not to feature Tracii Guns (there was also a Japan-only live album released in 1992)
[1].
A second L.A. Guns forms (2005)
In 2005 a remastered set of demos, which were recorded around the time L.A. Guns wrote their first album (before Phil Lewis joined) was released, featuring Paul Black on vocals. The album was called
Black List
. The album featured much of the same material as the band's first two studio albums, which Paul Black had a considerable role in writing before being dismissed from the band. This was surprising to many L.A. Guns fans since Black was denied credit on the first two albums and the information was never made public until the
Black List
release. Soon after this, as the
Brides of Destruction's second album did not maintain the success of the first,
Tracii Guns put together a "solo" band and focused his attention on that.
The Tracii Guns Band featured former L.A. Guns members
Paul Black,
Nickey "Beat" Alexander and
Tracii Guns, as well as Jeremy Carson, and Jason Saenz. The band soon began using the L.A. Guns name because it contained three founding members of the band.
In an odd twist on
October 10 2006, Phil Lewis joined Paul Black and Tracii Guns onstage at the celebration of the 20th anniversary of the Cathouse, a
Hollywood club run by
Riki Rachtman and
Taime Downe. The two frontmen
dueted on the band's song "Rip and Tear".
[2]
Recent events
On
August 29 2006, Phil Lewis' L.A. Guns released
Loud and Dangerous: Live from Hollywood
, a live compilation featuring the bands current line up, including a
DVD of some recent live tracks as part of the package.
On January 2, 2007, the Phil Lewis version of L.A. Guns released a cover of the song "
Crazy Bitch" - originally by fellow L.A.
sleaze rockers
Buckcherry. As of March 2007, bassist
Adam Hamilton has been replaced by
Scott Griffin.
In December 2007, the Tracii Guns version of the band's dressing room was robbed during a show at McGuffy's in Dayton, OH. Items taken included wallets, "a Blackberry and a bottle of
Jack Daniels whiskey."
[3]
On March 4, 2008, Tracii Guns' version of L.A. Guns was announced as one of the acts of the second
Rocklahoma festival.
August 7, 2008 through August 10, 2008 L.A. Guns played at the Dawson County Fair in Glendive, MT.
In May 2008, Paul Black once again parted ways with L.A. Guns.
Marty Casey joined the band to record a new record with Steve Thompson producing. The band toured in the summer of 08 with the lineup Marty Casey (vocals), Tracii Guns (lead Guitar), Jeremy "Guns" (bass), Alec Bauer aka Big AL (rhythm guitar), Chad Stewart (drums). This version of the band played select shows in 09 and once again Tracii announces a new singer, Jizzy Pearl. Marty Casey and Alec Bauer supposedly left the band to pursue other opportunities. There was some talk of this band changing their name and touring to support the new album but the absence of Marty leaves fans to wonder if the album they recorded in Canada will ever see the light of day.
Band members
Current line-up I (Phil Lewis band)
- Phil Lewis - vocals (1987-1995, 1999-present)
- Stacey Blades - guitar (2004-present)
- Kenny Kweens - bass (2009-present)
- Steve Riley - drums (1988-1992, 1994-present)
Current line-up II (Tracii Guns band)
- Jizzy Pearl - vocals (1998-1999, 2009-present)
- Tracii Guns - guitar (1983-2002, 2006-present)
- Jeremy Guns - bass (2006-present)
- Chad Stewart - drums (2007-present)
Discography
Studio Albums
Year
| Album
| US
| Certification
|
1988
| "L.A. Guns"
| 50
| Platinum
|
1989
| "Cocked & Loaded"
| 38
| Platinum
|
1991
| "Hollywood Vampires"
| 42
| Gold
|
1994
| ""Vicious Circle"
| -
| -
|
1995
| "American Hardcore"
| -
| -
|
1998
| " Wasted"
| -
| -
|
1999
| "Shrinking Violet"
| -
| -
|
2001
| Man in the Moon"
| -
| -
|
2002
| Waking the Dead"
| -
| -
|
|
Live Albums
- Live! Vampires
(1992) - Japan only
- Live: A Night on the Strip
(2000)
- ''Live Ammo (2004)
- Loud and Dangerous: Live from Hollywood
- Phil Lewis' L.A. Guns - (2006)
- Hellraiser's Ball Caught In The Act (CD Version)
- Phil Lewis' L.A. Guns - (2008)
Compilation
- Best Of: Hollywood A Go-Go
(1994) - Japan only
- Hollywood Rehearsal
(1997)
- Greatest Hits and Black Beauties
(1999)
- Black City Breakdown (1985-1986)
(2000)
- Ultimate LA Guns
(2002)
- Fully Loaded
(2003)
- Hollywood Raw
(2004) - Old Demos and No.1 Collectors Edition CD Re-Issue
- Black List
(2005)
- 20th Century Masters - The Millennium Collection: The Best Of L.A. Guns
(2005)
Singles
Year
| Single
| Chart positions
|
US Hot 100
| US Main Rock
| UK
|
1990
| "The Ballad Of Jayne"
| 33
| 25
| 53
|
1991
| "Kiss My Love Goodbye"
| -
| 16
| -
|
"Some Lie For Love"
| -
| -
| 61
|
1992
| "It s Over Now"
| 62
| 25
| -
|
Music Videos
- One Way Ticket - 1988
- One More Reason - 1988
- Sex Action - 1988
- Electric Gypsy - 1988
- Bitch is Back - 1988
- Cry No More - 1988
- Never Enough - 1989
- The Ballad of Jayne - 1989
- I Wanna Be Your Man - 1989
- Rip and Tear - 1989
- Malaria - 1989
- Some Lie 4 Love - 1991
- Kiss my Love Goodbye - 1991
- Over The Edge - 1991
- Long Time Dead - 1994
- Tie Your Mother Down - 2005
Videography
VHS Home Videos
- One More Reason
(1989)
- Love, Peace & Geese
(1991)
DVDs
- Hellraisers Ball
(2005)
- The Hollywood Years-Live and Loaded
(2007)
- Loud and Dangerous-Live From Hollywood
(2007)
Closely related bands
- Tracii Guns, Paul Black, Mick Cripps, Brent Muscat, Kelly Nickels, and Chad Stewart have all at one time or another played with both Faster Pussycat
and L.A. Guns
.
- During the 1990s, Mick Cripps formed an experimental/gothic rock band Burning Retina
. Drummer Nickey "Beat" Alexander and bassist Kelly Nickels have also both played in this band.
- Robert Stoddard was the original vocalist for the Dogs D'Amour
, L.A. Guns
vocalist Paul Black has also recorded an album with Dogs D'Amour
guitarist, Jo Almeida.
Notes
- L.A.Guns ''Live! Vampires'' reference link
- L.A. Gunners Unite at Cathouse
- Title Unavailable