Deep Purple
Deep Purple in 2004.
L-R: Roger Glover, Ian Paice, Ian Gillan, Don Airey and Steve
Morse
Background information
Also known
as
Roundabout
Origin
Hertford, England
Genres
Hard rock, heavy metal, blues rock,
progressive rock
Years active 1968–1976, 1984–present
Labels
Tetragrammaton, Warner Bros.,
Polydor, BMG, EMI, Edel
Associated
acts
The Outlaws, Episode Six, Rainbow,
Paice, Ashton & Lord, Black
Sabbath, Whitesnake, Blackmore's
Night, Dixie Dregs, Living Loud,
Angelfire
Website
Official website
Members
Ian Paice
Roger Glover
Ian Gillan
Steve Morse
Don Airey
Past members
Former members
Deep Purple are an English rock band formed in Hertford in 1968.[1] Along with Led Zeppelin
and Black Sabbath, they are considered to be among the pioneers of heavy metal and modern
hard rock, although some band members believe that their music cannot be categorised as
belonging to any one genre.[2][3][4] They were once listed by the Guinness Book of World Records
as "the loudest pop group",[5] and have sold over 100 million albums worldwide.[6][7][8][9] Deep
Purple were ranked #22 on VH1's Greatest Artists of Hard Rock programme.[10]
The band has gone through many line-up changes and an eight-year hiatus (1976–84). The 1968–
76 line-ups are commonly labelled Mark I, II, III and IV.[11][12] Their second and most
commercially successful line-up featured Ian Gillan (vocals), Jon Lord (keyboards), Roger
Glover (bass), Ian Paice (drums) and Ritchie Blackmore (guitar).[13] This line-up was active from
1969 to 1973, and was revived from 1984 to 1989, and again in 1993, before the rift between
Blackmore and other members became unbridgeable. The current line-up (including guitarist
Steve Morse) has been much more stable, although Lord's retirement in 2002 has left Paice as the
only original member never to have left the band.
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[edit] History
[edit] Pre-Deep Purple years (1967–68)
In 1967, former Searchers drummer Chris Curtis contacted London businessman Tony Edwards,
in the hope that he would manage a new group he was putting together, to be called
Roundabout: so-called because the members would get on and off the band, like a musical
roundabout. Impressed with the plan, Edwards agreed to finance the venture with two business
partners: John Coletta and Ron Hire, all of Hire-Edwards-Coletta (HEC) Enterprises.[14]
The first recruit was the classically-trained Hammond organ player Jon Lord, who had most
notably played with The Artwoods (led by Art Wood, brother of future Rolling Stones guitarist
Ronnie Wood, and featuring Keef Hartley). He was followed by session guitarist Ritchie
Blackmore, who was persuaded to return from Hamburg to audition for the new group.
Blackmore was making a name for himself as a session guitartist, and had also been a member of
Screaming Lord Sutch's The Savages. Curtis' erratic behavior soon forced him out of his own
project, but HEC Enterprises as well as Lord and Blackmore were keen to carry on.
For the bass guitar, Lord suggested his old friend Nick Simper, with whom he had played in a
band called The Flower Pot Men and their Garden (formerly known as The Ivy League) back in
1967. Simper's claims to fame (apart from Deep Purple) were that he had been in Johnny Kidd
and The Pirates and the car crash that killed Kidd. He was also in a group called The Delta Five
which played the same circuit as The Savages, and it was then that he had first met Blackmore.
Top English drummer Bobby Woodman was the initial choice for the drums, but during the
auditions for a singer, Rod Evans of the Maze came in with his drummer, Ian Paice. Blackmore
had seen Paice with the Maze in Germany in 1966, and had been impressed by the 18-year old's
drumming. While Woodman was out for cigarettes, Blackmore quickly arranged an audition for
Paice. Both Paice and Evans won their respective jobs, and the lineup was complete.[15]
The band began in earnest in March of 1968, rehearsing at Deeves Hall in South Mimms. After a
brief tour of Denmark that April, Blackmore suggested a new name: Deep Purple, named after
his grandmother's favourite song. The group had resolved to choose a name after everyone had
posted one on a board in rehearsal. Second to Deep Purple was "Concrete God", which the band
thought was too harsh to take on.[16][17]
[edit] Breakthrough (1968–70)
In October 1968, the group had success with a cover of Joe South's "Hush", which reached
number 4 on the US Billboard charts and number 2 on the Canadian RPM charts. The song was
taken from their debut album Shades of Deep Purple, which was released in July 1968, and they
were booked to support Cream on their Goodbye tour.
The band's second album, The Book of Taliesyn (including a cover of Neil Diamond's "Kentucky
Woman"), was released in the United States to coincide with the tour, reaching number 38 on the
Billboard charts and number 21 on the RPM charts, although it would not be released in their
home country until the following year. Early 1969 saw the release of their third album, Deep
Purple, which contained strings and woodwind on one track ("April"). Several influences were in
evidence, notably Vanilla Fudge (Blackmore has even claimed the group wanted to be a "Vanilla
Fudge clone")[18] and Lord's classical antecedents, such as Bach and Rimsky-Korsakov. Not
satisfied with the possibilities for singles off this album, the band also recorded a single called
"Emmaretta", named for Emmaretta Marks, then a cast member of the musical Hair, whom
Evans was trying to seduce. This would be the last recording by the original lineup.
After the third album's release and extensive touring in the United States, their American record
company, Tetragrammaton, went out of business, leaving the band with no money and an
uncertain future. (Tetragrammaton's assets were assumed by Warner Bros. Records, who would
release Deep Purple's records in the US throughout the 1970s.) During the 1969 American tour,
Blackmore and Lord met with Paice to discuss their desire to take the band in a heavier direction.
Feeling that Evans and Simper would not fit well with a heavy rock style, both were fired that
summer. Said Paice, "A change had to come. If they hadn't left, the band would have totally
disintegrated."[19]
In search of a replacement vocalist, Blackmore set his sights on 19-year-old singer Terry Reid,
who declined a similar opportunity to front the newly forming Led Zeppelin only a year earlier.
Though he found the offer "flattering", Reid was still bound by the exclusive recording contract
with his producer Mickie Most and more interested in his solo career.[20] Blackmore had no other
choice but to look elsewhere.
The band hunted down singer Ian Gillan from Episode Six, a band that had released several
singles in the UK without achieving their big break for commercial success. Gillan had at one
time been approached by Nick Simper when Deep Purple was first forming, but Gillan had
reportedly told Simper that Deep Purple wouldn't go anywhere, while he felt Episode Six was
poised to make it big.[21] Six's drummer Mick Underwood – an old comrade of Blackmore's from
his Savages days – introduced the band to Gillan and bassist Roger Glover. This effectively
killed Episode Six and gave Underwood a guilt complex that lasted nearly a decade, until Gillan
recruited him for his new post-Purple band in the late 1970s. This created the quintessential Deep
Purple Mark II line-up, whose first, inauspicious release was a Greenaway-Cook tune titled
"Hallelujah", which flopped.
The band gained some much-needed publicity in September, 1969, with the Concerto for Group
and Orchestra, a three-movement epic composed by Lord as a solo project and performed by the
band at the Royal Albert Hall with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, conducted by Malcolm
Arnold. Together with Five Bridges by The Nice, it was one of the first collaborations between a
rock band and an orchestra. However, Blackmore and Gillan especially were less than happy at
the group being tagged as "a group who played with orchestras" at the time; what they had in
mind was to develop the band into a much tighter, hard-rocking style. Despite this, Lord wrote
the Gemini Suite, another orchestra/group collaboration in the same vein, for the band in late
1970.
[edit] Popularity and break-up (1970–76)
Ian Gillan in Clemson, SC, 1972
Shortly after the orchestral release, the band began a hectic touring and recording schedule that
was to see little respite for the next three years. Their first studio album of this period, released in
mid-1970, was In Rock (a name supported by the album's Mount Rushmore-inspired cover),
which contained the then-concert staples "Speed King", "Into The Fire" and "Child in Time".
The band also issued the UK Top Ten single "Black Night". The interplay between Blackmore's
guitar and Lord's distorted organ, coupled with Gillan's howling vocals and the rhythm section of
Glover and Paice, now started to take on a unique identity that further separated the band from its
earlier albums.
A second album, the creatively progressive Fireball, was issued in the summer of 1971. The title
track "Fireball" was released as a single, as was "Strange Kind of Woman", not from the album
but recorded during the same sessions (although it replaced "Demon's Eye" on the US version of
the album).
Within weeks of Fireball's release, the band were already performing songs planned for the next
album. One song (which later became "Highway Star") was performed at the first gig of the
Fireball tour, having been written on the bus to a show in Portsmouth, in answer to a journalist's
question: "How do you go about writing songs?" Three months later, in December 1971, the
band traveled to Switzerland to record Machine Head. The album was due to be recorded at a
casino in Montreux, using the Rolling Stones Mobile Studio, but a fire during a Frank Zappa and
the Mothers of Invention gig, caused by a man firing a flare gun into the ceiling, burned down
the casino. This incident famously inspired the song "Smoke on the Water." The album was later
recorded in a corridor at the nearby empty Grand Hotel.
Continuing from where both previous albums left off, Machine Head has since become the
band's most famous album. It reached #1 in the UK, #7 in the U.S., and included tracks that
became live classics, such as "Highway Star", "Space Truckin'", "Lazy" and "Smoke on the
Water", for which Deep Purple is most famous. Deep Purple continued to tour and record at a
rate that would be rare thirty years on; when Machine Head was recorded, the group had only
been together three and a half years, yet the album was their seventh LP. Meanwhile, the band
undertook four North America tours in 1972, and a Japan tour that led to a double-vinyl live
release, Made in Japan. Originally intended as a Japan-only record, its worldwide release saw
the double LP become an instant hit. It remains one of rock music's most popular and highest
selling live-concert recordings (although at the time it was perhaps seen as less important, as
only Glover and Paice turned up to mix it).
Blackmore in Hannover, Germany, 1970 (with the touring band)
The classic Deep Purple Mark II line-up continued to work, and released the album Who Do We
Think We Are (1973), featuring the hit single "Woman from Tokyo", but internal tensions and
exhaustion were more noticeable than ever. In many ways, the band had become victims of their
own success. Following the successes of Machine Head and Made in Japan, the addition of Who
Do We Think We Are made them the top-selling artists of 1973 in the USA.[22] Ian Gillan
admitted in a 1984 interview that the band was pushed by management to complete the album on
time and go on tour, although they badly needed a break.[23] The bad feelings culminated in
Gillan, followed by Glover, quitting the band after their second tour of Japan in the summer of
1973 over tensions with Blackmore.
Lord in Hannover, Germany, 1970 (with the touring band)
The band first hired Midlands bassist/vocalist Glenn Hughes, formerly of Trapeze. According to
Ian Paice, Glover had told him and Lord that he wanted to leave the band a few months before
his official resignation, so they had already started to drop in on Trapeze shows. After acquiring
Hughes, they debated continuing as a four-piece band, with Hughes as both bassist and lead
vocalist.[24][25] According to Hughes, he was persuaded to join under the guise that the band
would be bringing in Paul Rodgers of Free as a co-lead vocalist, but by that time Rodgers had
just started Bad Company.[26] Instead, auditions were held for lead vocal replacements. Two
primary candidates surfaced: Angus Cameron McKinlay, a Scotsman; and David Coverdale, an
unknown singer from Saltburn in Northeast England. They settled on Coverdale, primarily
because Blackmore liked his masculine, blues-tinged voice, and Angus was eliminated.[25]
Gillan and Glover in Hannover, Germany, 1970 (with the touring band)
This new line-up continued into 1974. The band played at the famous California Jam festival at
Ontario Motor Speedway located in California on 6 April 1974. Attracting over 250,000[27] fans,
the festival also included 1970s rock giants Black Sabbath, Eagles, Emerson, Lake & Palmer,
Earth, Wind & Fire, Seals and Crofts, Rare Earth and Black Oak Arkansas. Portions of the show
were telecast on ABC Television in the US, exposing the band to a wider audience. This lineup's
first album, titled Burn, was a highly successful release (only the second album, after Machine
Head, to crack the USA Top 10), and was followed by another world tour. Hughes and
Coverdale added vocal harmonies and elements of funk and blues, respectively, to the band's
music, a sound that was even more apparent on the late 1974 release Stormbringer.[25] Besides
the title track, the album had a number of songs that received much radio play, such as "Lady
Double Dealer", "The Gypsy" and "Soldier Of Fortune." However, Blackmore voiced
unhappiness with the album and the direction Deep Purple had taken, stating simply, "I don't like
funky soul music."[28] As a result, he left the band on 21 June 1975 to form his own band with
Ronnie James Dio of Elf, called Ritchie Blackmore's Rainbow, later shortened to Rainbow after
one album.
Paice in Hannover, Germany, 1970 (with the touring band)
With Blackmore's departure, Deep Purple was left to fill one of the biggest band member
vacancies in rock music. In spite of this, the rest of the band refused to stop, and to the surprise
of many long-time fans, actually announced a replacement for Blackmore: American Tommy
Bolin. There are at least two versions about the recruitment of Bolin: Coverdale claims to have
been the one who suggested auditioning Bolin.[29] "He walked in, thin as a rake, his hair coloured
green, yellow and blue with feathers in it. Slinking along beside him was this stunning Hawaiian
girl in a crochet dress with nothing on underneath. He plugged into four Marshall 100-watt
stacks and...the job was his". But in an interview originally published by Melody Maker in June
1975, Bolin himself claimed that he came to the audition following a recommendation from
Blackmore.[30] Bolin had been a member of many now-forgotten late-1960s bands – Denny &
The Triumphs, American Standard, and Zephyr, which released three albums from 1969–72.
Before Deep Purple, Bolin's best-known recordings were made as a session musician on Billy
Cobham's 1973 jazz fusion album Spectrum, and as Joe Walsh's replacement on two James Gang
albums: Bang (1973) and Miami (1974). He had also jammed with such luminaries as Dr. John,
Albert King, The Good Rats, Moxy and Alphonse Mouzon, and was busy working on his first
solo album, Teaser, when he accepted the invitation to join Deep Purple.
The resulting album, Come Taste the Band, was released in October 1975. Despite mixed
reviews, the collection revitalised the band once again, bringing a new, extreme funk edge to
their hard rock sound.[31] Bolin's influence was crucial, and with encouragement from Hughes
and Coverdale, the guitarist developed much of the material. Later, Bolin's personal problems
with drugs began to manifest themselves, and after cancelled shows and below-par concert
performances, the band was in danger.
[edit] Band split, side projects (1976–84)
The end came on tour in Britain in March 1976 at the Liverpool Empire Theatre. Coverdale
reportedly walked off in tears and handed in his resignation, to which he was allegedly told there
was no band left to quit. The decision to disband Deep Purple had been made some time before
the last show by Lord and Paice (the last remaining original members), who hadn't told anyone
else. The break-up was finally made public in July 1976.
Later, Bolin had just finished recording his second solo album, Private Eyes, when, on 4
December 1976, tragedy struck. In Miami, during a tour supporting Jeff Beck, Bolin was found
unconscious by his girlfriend. Unable to wake him, she hurriedly called paramedics, but it was
too late. The official cause of death was multiple-drug intoxication. Bolin was 25 years old.
After the break-up, most of the past and present members of Deep Purple went on to have
considerable success in a number of other bands, including Rainbow, Whitesnake, Black Sabbath
and Gillan. There were, however, a number of promoter-led attempts to get the band to reform,
especially with the revival of the hard rock market in the late 1970s and early 1980s. In 1980, a
touring version of the band surfaced with Rod Evans as the only member who had ever been in
Deep Purple, eventually ending in successful legal action from the legitimate Deep Purple camp
over unauthorised use of the name. Evans was ordered to pay damages of US$672,000 for using
the band name without permission.[32]
[edit] Reunions and break-ups (1984–94)
Deep Purple at the Cow Palace, San Francisco, California. 31 January 1985
In April 1984, eight years after the demise of Deep Purple, a full-scale (and legal) reunion took
place with the "classic" early 1970s line-up of Blackmore, Gillan, Glover, Lord and Paice. The
reformed band signed a worldwide deal with PolyGram, with Mercury Records releasing their
albums in the United States, and Polydor Records in other countries. The album Perfect
Strangers was recorded in Vermont and released in October 1984. A solid release, it sold
extremely well (reaching #5 in the UK and #17 on the Billboard 200 in the US[33]) and included
the singles and concert staples "Knockin' At Your Back Door" and "Perfect Strangers". The
reunion tour followed, starting in Australia and winding its way across the world to North
America, then into Europe by the following summer. Financially, the tour was also a tremendous
success. In the U.S., the 1985 tour out-grossed every other artist except Bruce Springsteen.[34]
The UK homecoming proved limited, as they elected to play just a single festival show at
Knebworth (with main support from the Scorpions; also on the bill were UFO, Bernie Marsden's
Alaska, Mama's Boys, Blackfoot, Mountain and Meat Loaf). The weather was bad (torrential
rain and 6" of mud), but 80,000 fans turned up anyway. The gig was called the "Return Of The
Knebworth Fayre".
The line-up then released The House of Blue Light in 1987, which was followed by a world tour
(interrupted after Blackmore broke a finger on stage while trying to catch his guitar after
throwing it in the air) and another live album Nobody's Perfect (1988) which was culled from
several shows on this tour, but still largely based on the by-now familiar Made in Japan set-list.
In the UK a new version of "Hush" (with Gillan on lead vocals) was released to mark 20 years of
the band. In 1989, Gillan was fired as his relations with Blackmore had again soured and their
musical differences had diverged too far. Originally, the band intended to recruit Survivor
frontman Jimi Jamison as Gillan's replacement, but this fell through due to complications with
Jamison's record label.[35][36] Eventually, after auditioning several high-profile candidates,
including Brian Howe (White Spirit, Ted Nugent, Bad Company), Doug Pinnick (King's X),
Australians Jimmy Barnes (Cold Chisel) and John Farnham (Little River Band), Norman "Kal"
Swann (Tytan, Lion, Bad Moon Rising) and Terry Brock (Strangeways),[37] former Rainbow
vocalist Joe Lynn Turner was recruited into the band. This line-up recorded just one album,
Slaves & Masters (1990) and toured in support, though some fans derided it as little more than a
so-called "Deep Rainbow" album.
With the tour complete, Turner was forced out, as Lord, Paice and Glover (and the record
company) wanted Gillan back in the fold for the 25th anniversary. Blackmore grudgingly
relented, after requesting and eventually receiving 250,000 dollars in his bank account[38] and the
classic line-up recorded The Battle Rages On. But Gillan reworked much of the existing material
for the album. As a result, Blackmore became infuriated at the non-melodic elements during an
otherwise stunningly successful European tour. Blackmore walked out in November 1993, never
to return. Joe Satriani was drafted to complete the Japanese dates in December and stayed on for
a European Summer tour in 1994. He was asked to join permanently, but his record contract
commitments prevented this. The band unanimously chose Dixie Dregs/Kansas guitarist Steve
Morse to become Blackmore's permanent successor.
[edit] Revival with Steve Morse (1994–present)
Roger Glover and Steve Morse jamming during the intro to "Highway Star"
Morse's arrival revitalised the band creatively, and in 1996 a new album titled Purpendicular
was released, showing a wide variety of musical styles. The line-up then released a new live
album Live at The Olympia '96 in 1997. With a revamped set list to tour, Deep Purple enjoyed
success throughout the rest of the 1990s, releasing the harder-sounding Abandon in 1998, and
touring with renewed enthusiasm. In 1999, Lord, with the help of a Dutch fan, who was also a
musicologist and composer, Marco de Goeij, painstakingly recreated the Concerto for Group and
Orchestra, the original score having been lost. It was once again performed at the Royal Albert
Hall in September 1999, this time with the London Symphony Orchestra conducted by Paul
Mann. The concert also featured songs from each member's solo careers, as well as a short Deep
Purple set, and the occasion was commemorated on the 2000 album Live at the Royal Albert
Hall. In early 2001, two similar concerts were performed in Tokyo and released as part of the
box set The Soundboard Series.
Ian Paice, drummer and last remaining original member of Deep Purple
Much of the next few years was spent on the road touring. The group continued forward until
2002, when founding member Lord (who, along with Paice, was the only member to be in all
incarnations of the band) announced his amicable retirement from the band to pursue personal
projects (especially orchestral work). Lord left his Hammond organ to his replacement. Rock
keyboard veteran Don Airey (Rainbow, Ozzy Osbourne, Black Sabbath, Whitesnake), who had
helped Deep Purple out when Lord's knee was injured in 2001, joined the band. In 2003, Deep
Purple released their first studio album in five years (Bananas) and began touring in support of
the album immediately. In July 2005, the band played at the Live 8 concert in Park Place (Barrie,
Ontario) and, in October of the same year, released their next album Rapture of the Deep. It was
followed by the Rapture of the Deep tour.
In February 2007, Gillan asked fans not to buy a live album Come Hell or High Water being
released by Sony BMG. This was a recording of their 1993 appearance at the NEC in
Birmingham. Recordings of this show have previously been released without resistance from
Gillan or any other members of the band, but he said: "It was one of the lowest points of my life
– all of our lives, actually".[39]
Gillan hinted that the group may record their nineteenth studio album in February 2010,[40] to be
followed by a supporting tour.[41] Steve Morse later revealed in an interview that the band would
begin working on a new album in March.
The band's chief sound engineer on nine years of tours, Moray McMillin, died in September
2011, aged 57 [42].
[edit] Band members
Main article: List of Deep Purple band members
[edit] Current members
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Ian Paice – drums, percussion (1968–1976, 1984–present)
Roger Glover – bass (1969–1973, 1984–present)
Ian Gillan – lead vocals, harmonica, congas (1969–1973, 1984–1989, 1992–present)
Steve Morse – guitar (1994–present)
Don Airey – keyboards, organ (2001–present)
[edit] Former members
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Jon Lord – keyboards, organ, backing vocals (1968–1976, 1984–2002)
Ritchie Blackmore – guitar (1968–1975, 1984–1993)
Rod Evans – lead vocals (1968–1969)
Nick Simper – bass, backing vocals (1968–1969)
David Coverdale – lead vocals (1973–1976)
Glenn Hughes – bass, vocals (1973–1976)
Tommy Bolin – guitar, vocals (1975–1976)
Joe Lynn Turner – lead vocals (1989–1991)
Joe Satriani – guitar (1993–1994)
[edit] World tours
Deep Purple guitarist Steve Morse
Deep Purple are considered to be one of the hardest touring bands in the world.[43][44][45] From
1968 until today (with the exception of their 1976–1984 split) they continue to tour around the
world. In 2007, the band received a special award for selling more than 150,000 tickets in
France, with 40 dates in the country in 2007 alone.[46] Also in 2007, Deep Purple's Rapture of the
Deep Tour was voted #6 concert tour of the year (in all music genres) by Planet Rock
listeners.[47] The Rolling Stones' A Bigger Bang Tour was voted #5 and beat Purple's tour by
only 1%. Deep Purple released a new live compilation DVD box, Around the World Live, in
May 2008. In February 2008, the band made their first ever appearance in Moscow at the
Kremlin[48] at the personal request of Dmitry Medvedev who at the time was considered a shooin for the seat of the Presidency of Russia. The band was part of the entertainment for the FIS
Nordic World Ski Championships 2009 in Liberec, Czech Republic.[49]
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Deep Purple Debut Tour, 1968
Shades of Deep Purple Tour, 1968
The Book of Taliesyn Tour, 1968
Deep Purple European Tour, (pre-tour for In Rock) 1969–1970
In Rock World Tour – 1970–1971
Fireball World Tour, 1971–1972
Machine Head World Tour, 1972–1973
Deep Purple European Tour 1974
Burn World Tour, 1974
Stormbringer World Tour, 1974–1975
Come Taste The Band World Tour, 1975–1976
Perfect Strangers World Tour, aka Reunion Tour 1984–1985
The House of Blue Light World Tour, 1987–1988
Slaves and Masters World Tour, 1991
Deep Purple 25 Years Anniversary World Tour, aka The Battle Rages on Tour, 1993
Deep Purple and Joe Satriani Tour, 1993–1994
Deep Purple Secret Mexican Tour (short warm-up tour with Steve Morse)
Deep Purple Secret USA Tour 1994–1995
Deep Purple Asian & African Tour 1995
Purpendicular World Tour, 1996–1997
A Band on World Tour, 1998–1999
Concerto World Tour, 2000–2001
Deep Purple World Tour, 2001–2003
Bananas World Tour, 2003–2005
Rapture of the Deep World Tour, 2006–2011
Deep Purple: The Songs That Built Rock Tour 2011
[edit] Bibliography

Deep Purple - The Illustrated Biography, Chris Charlesworth, Omnibus Press, 1983,
ISBN 0-7119-0174-0


Smoke on the Water: The Deep Purple Story, Dave Thompson, ECW Press, 2004, ISBN
1-55022-618-5
The Complete Deep Purple, Michael Heatley, Reynolds & Hearn, 2005, ISBN 1-90311199-4
[hide]v · d · eDeep Purple
Ian Gillan · Steve Morse · Roger Glover · Ian Paice · Don Airey
Jon Lord · Ritchie Blackmore · David Coverdale · Glenn Hughes · Rod Evans · Nick Simper ·
Tommy Bolin · Joe Lynn Turner · Joe Satriani
Studio
albums
Shades of Deep Purple (1968) · The Book of Taliesyn (1968) · Deep Purple
(1969) · Deep Purple in Rock (1970) · Fireball (1971) · Machine Head (1972) ·
Who Do We Think We Are (1973) · Burn (1974) · Stormbringer (1974) · Come
Taste the Band (1975) · Perfect Strangers (1984) · The House of Blue Light
(1987) · Slaves and Masters (1990) · The Battle Rages On... (1993) ·
Purpendicular (1996) · Abandon (1998) · Bananas (2003) · Rapture of the Deep
(2005)
Concerto for Group and Orchestra · Made in Japan · Made in Europe · Last
Concert in Japan · Deep Purple in Concert · Live in London · Scandinavian
Nights · Nobody's Perfect · Knebworth '85 · Live in Japan · Come Hell or High
Water · King Biscuit Flower Hour · California Jamming · Mk III: The Final
Concerts · Live at the Olympia '96 · Gemini Suite Live · Total Abandon: Australia
Live albums '99 · Deep Purple: Extended Versions · Live at the Royal Albert Hall · Live at the
Rotterdam Ahoy · This Time Around: Live in Tokyo · The Soundboard Series ·
Live in Paris 1975 · Inglewood – Live in California · Space Vol 1 & 2 · Perks and
Tit / Live in San Diego 1974 · Live in Stockholm · Live in Europe 1993 · Live at
Montreux 1996 · Live in Montreux 69 · Live in Denmark 1972 · Live at Montreux
2006 · Live at Montreux 2011
Purple Passages · 24 Carat Purple · Powerhouse · When We Rock, We Rock, and
When We Roll, We Roll · The Mark II Purple Singles · Deepest Purple · The
Compilation Anthology · The Deep Purple Singles A's and B's · 30: Very Best of Deep Purple ·
albums
Shades 1968-1998 · Days May Come and Days May Go · Smoke On The Water &
Other Hits · Listen, Learn, Read On · Winning Combinations: Deep Purple and
Rainbow · The Early Years · The Platinum Collection
Singles
and other
songs
"Hush" · "And The Address" · "Hey Joe" · "Love Help Me" · "Help!" · "Mandrake
Root" · "Prelude:Happiness / I'm So Glad" · "One More Rainy Day" · "Kentucky
Woman" · "River Deep – Mountain High" · "Hallelujah" · "Black Night" · "Speed
King" · "Child in Time" · "Strange Kind of Woman" · "Fireball" · "Highway
Star" · "Maybe I'm a Leo" · "Never Before" · "Smoke on the Water" · "Lazy" ·
"Space Truckin'" · "When a Blind Man Cries" · "Burn" · "Mistreated" · "Perfect
Strangers" · "Call of the Wild" · "Hush '88" · "Vavoom: Ted the Mechanic" · "Any
Fule Kno That"
Concerto for Group and Orchestra · Doing Their Thing · Live in Concert 72/73 ·
Videography California Jam / Live in California 74 · Rises Over Japan · Heavy Metal Pioneers
· Special Edition EP · Come Hell or High Water · Bombay Calling · Live at
Montreux 1996 · Total Abandon Australia '99 · In Concert with the London
Symphony Orchestra · New, Live & Rare · Perihelion · Live Encounters · Classic
Albums: Deep Purple - Machine Head · They All Came Down to Montreux ·
Around the World Live · History, Hits & Highlights '68–'76 · Gettin' Tighter
Tours
Deep Purple Debut Tour · First UK tour · Book of Taliesyn Tour · Deep Purple
European Tour · In Rock World Tour · Rockupation '75 · Deep Purple Secret
Mexican Tour · Deep Purple Secret USA Tour · Concerto Tour · Rapture of the
Deep World Tour · The Songs That Built Rock Tour
Associated
acts
Rainbow · Blackmore's Night · Ian Gillan Band · Gillan · Whitesnake · Trapeze ·
Black Sabbath · Led Zeppelin · Dixie Dregs · The Outlaws · Captain Beyond ·
Episode Six · Warhorse · Zephyr · Green Bullfrog · Paice, Ashton & Lord · Lord
Sutch's Savages · Hughes Turner Project · Fandango · Black Country Communion
Related
articles
Discography · Members · Purple Records · Martin Birch · Derek Lawrence ·
Claude Nobs · Randy California · John Coletta

This page was last modified on 13 October 2011 at 17:37.
Rainbow (band)
Rainbow
Ronnie James Dio and Ritchie Blackmore in
Norway, 1977
Background information
Also known
as
Ritchie Blackmore's Rainbow
Blackmore's Rainbow
Origin
England
Genres
Hard rock, heavy metal, neo-
classical metal
Years active
1975–1984
1994–1997
Labels
Polydor, BMG
Associated
acts
Deep Purple, Elf, Black Sabbath,
Dio, Michael Schenker Group,
Yngwie Malmsteen's Rising Force,
Blackmore's Night
Past members
See: Member history
Rainbow (also known as Ritchie Blackmore's Rainbow or Blackmore's Rainbow) were an
English rock band, controlled by guitarist Ritchie Blackmore from 1975 to 1984 and 1994 to
1997. It was originally established with former Elf members, though over the years Rainbow
went through many line-up changes with no two studio albums featuring the same line-up. In
addition to lead singers Ronnie James Dio, Graham Bonnet, Joe Lynn Turner and Doogie White,
the project consisted of numerous backing musicians. The band started out combining mystical
lyric themes with neo-classical metal, but went in a more streamlined commercial style following
Dio's departure from the group.[1]
Rainbow was ranked #90 on VH1's 100 Greatest Artists of Hard Rock.[2]

[edit] History
Ronnie James Dio, the lead vocalist from 1975-79. In addition to writing the music with Ritchie
Blackmore, Dio wrote all of the band's lyrics.
[edit] Early years
In 1974, Ritchie Blackmore publicly disliked the funk/soul (or as Blackmore called it, "shoeshine
music") elements being introduced to Deep Purple by David Coverdale and Glenn Hughes, as
well as the disappointing Stormbringer album where his favourite musical style wasn't
adequately captured. Blackmore originally intended to release a solo single, the Steve
Hammond-penned "Black Sheep of the Family", with "Sixteenth Century Greensleeves" on the
B-side. He recorded these during a studio session in Tampa Bay, Florida on 12 December 1974
with singer/lyricist Ronnie James Dio, drummer Gary Driscoll of the blues-rock band Elf, former
Procol Harum keyboardist Matthew Fisher, and cellist Hugh McDowell of ELO. Satisfied with
the two tracks, Blackmore decided to make a solo album, replacing the keyboardist and bassist
with Elf members Micky Lee Soule and Craig Gruber, respectively. The full album was recorded
in Musicland Studios, Munich, Germany in about 3 weeks in February 1975. Though it was
originally thought to be a solo album, the record was billed as Ritchie Blackmore's Rainbow.
Blackmore decided to leave Deep Purple and form his own band Rainbow. The name of the band
was inspired by the Rainbow Bar and Grill in Hollywood that catered to rock stars, groupies and
rock enthusiasts.[3]
Rainbow performing in Munich in 1977. The electric rainbow that spanned the stage used so
much power, it frequently interfered with the guitars and amplifiers.[4]
Rainbow's debut album, Ritchie Blackmore's Rainbow, was released in 1975 and featured the
minor hit "Man on the Silver Mountain". This first line-up never performed live. Blackmore and
Dio did promotional work for the album.
Rainbow's music was directly inspired by classical music, and Dio wrote lyrics about medieval
themes. Dio possessed a versatile vocal range capable of singing both hard rock and lighter
ballads. Although Dio never played a musical instrument on any Rainbow album, he is credited
with writing and arranging the music with Blackmore, in addition to writing all the lyrics
himself.[5][6][7]
Blackmore fired everybody except Dio shortly after the album was recorded, due to Gary
Driscoll's R&B style of drumming and the funky bass playing of Craig Gruber. Micky Lee Soule
quit due to Blackmore's decisions, and Blackmore recruited Cozy Powell, Jeff Beck's drummer,
bassist Jimmy Bain, and American keyboard player Tony Carey. This line-up went on to record
the next album Rising. This line-up also commenced the first world tour for the band, with the
first US dates in late 1975. Album art was designed by famed fantasy artist Ken Kelly, who had
drawn Tarzan and Conan the Barbarian.[8][9]
By the time of the European dates in the summer of 1976, Rainbow's reputation as a blistering
live act was already established. Blackmore subsequently decided that Bain was substandard and
fired him in January 1977. The same fate befell Tony Carey shortly after. Blackmore, however,
had difficulty finding replacements he liked. On keyboards, after auditioning several high profile
artists, including Vanilla Fudge's Mark Stein, Procol Harum's Matthew Fisher and ex-Curved Air
and Roxy Music man Eddie Jobson, Blackmore finally selected Canadian David Stone, from the
little-known band Symphonic Slam. For a bass player, Blackmore originally chose Mark Clarke,
formerly of Jon Hiseman's Colosseum, Uriah Heep and Tempest, but once in the studio for the
next album, Long Live Rock 'n' Roll, Blackmore disliked Clarke's fingerstyle method of playing
so much that he fired Clarke on the spot and played bass himself on all but four songs: the
album's title track, "Gates of Babylon", "Kill the King", and "Sensitive to Light". Former
Widowmaker bassist, Australian Bob Daisley was hired to record these tracks, completing the
band's next line-up.
After the release and extensive world tour in 1977–78, Blackmore decided that he wanted to take
the band in a new commercial direction away from the "sword and sorcery" theme.[10] Dio did
not agree with this change and left Rainbow.
[edit] Commercial success
Graham Bonnet, the lead vocalist on Down to Earth, in 2008. With Bonnet, Rainbow reached
UK chart success with "Since You Been Gone".
Blackmore attempted to replace Dio with Ian Gillan, but Gillan turned him down. After a series
of auditions, former vocalist/guitarist of The Marbles, Graham Bonnet was recruited instead.
Powell stayed, but Daisley and Stone were both fired, the latter being replaced by keyboardist
Don Airey. The band was, at first, auditioning for bass players, but, at Cozy Powell's suggestion,
it was then agreed that Blackmore would hire then-former Deep Purple member Roger Glover as
a producer, bassist and lyricist.[11] The first album from the new line-up, Down to Earth, featured
the band's first major singles chart successes, "All Night Long" and the Russ Ballard-penned
"Since You Been Gone". In 1980, the band headlined the inaugural 'Monsters of Rock' festival at
Castle Donington in England. However, this was Powell's last Rainbow gig, as he had already
given his notice to quit, disliking Blackmore's increasingly pop rock direction. Bonnet was fired
the night Powell quit due to a drunken performance. Soon after, he would also join the Michael
Schenker Group. Bonnet was fired from MSG due to similar problems as with Rainbow.
Joe Lynn Turner in 2008. The Turner-fronted "Stone Cold" was Rainbow's only Top 40 hit in the
United States.
For the next album, Bonnet and Powell were replaced by Americans Joe Lynn Turner and Bobby
Rondinelli, respectively. The title track from the album, Difficult to Cure, was a version of
Beethoven's Ninth Symphony. The album spawned their most successful UK single, "I
Surrender" (another Ballard song), which reached No.3. It also contained the guitar piece,
"Maybe Next Time". After the supporting tour, Don Airey then quit over musical direction and
was replaced on keyboards by David Rosenthal.
The band attained significant airplay on Album-oriented rock radio stations in the US with the
track "Jealous Lover", reaching #13 on Billboard Magazine's Rock Tracks chart, which tracked
AOR airplay. Originally issued as the B-side to "Can't Happen Here", "Jealous Lover"
subsequently became the title track to an EP issued in the US that featured very similar cover art
to "Difficult to Cure".
Rainbow's next full length studio album was Straight Between the Eyes. The album was more
cohesive than Difficult to Cure, and had more success in the United States. The band, however,
was alienating some of its earlier fans with its more AOR sound.[1] The single, "Stone Cold", was
a ballad that had some chart success (#1 on Billboard Magazine's Rock Tracks chart) and the
video of which received heavy airplay on MTV. The successful supporting tour skipped the UK
completely and focused on the American market. A date in San Antonio, Texas on this tour was
filmed, and the resulting "Live Between the Eyes" also received repeated showings on MTV.
Bent Out of Shape saw drummer Rondinelli fired in favour of former Balance drummer Chuck
Burgi. The album featured the single "Street of Dreams". According to Blackmore's biography
on his official web site, the song's video was banned by MTV for its supposedly controversial
hypnotic video clip.[12] However, Dr. Thomas Radecki of the National Coalition on Television
Violence criticised MTV for airing the video, which would contradict Blackmore's claim.[13] The
resulting tour saw Rainbow return to the UK, and also to Japan in March 1984 where the band
performed "Difficult to Cure" with a full orchestra. The concert was also filmed.
[edit] Dissolution and temporary revival
Ritchie Blackmore, the bandleader and lead guitarist, signing autographs in 1997.
A then-Rainbow's management Thames Talent made a resounding offer to reform Deep Purple
MKII. By April 1984, Rainbow was disbanded. A then-final Rainbow album, Finyl Vinyl, was
pieced together from live tracks and B-sides of singles. The album contained the instrumental
"Weiss Heim", widely available for the first time. In 1993, Blackmore left Deep Purple
permanently due to "creative differences" with other members, and reformed a new Rainbow
with all-new members featuring Scottish singer Doogie White. The band released Stranger in Us
All in 1995, and embarked on a lengthy world tour.
The tour proved very successful, and a show in Germany was professionally filmed by
Rockpalast. It has never officially been released, but has been heavily bootlegged (and
considered by many collectors to be the best Rainbow bootleg of the era). The live shows
featured frequent changes in set lists, and musical improvisations that proved popular with
bootleggers and many shows are still traded over a decade later.
However, Blackmore turned his attention to his long-time musical passion, Renaissance and
medieval music. Rainbow was put on hold once again, after playing its final concert in Esbjerg,
Denmark in 1997. Blackmore, together with his partner Candice Night as vocalist, then formed
the Renaissance-influenced Blackmore's Night. Around the same time as production of Stranger
in Us All (1995), they were already gearing up their debut album Shadow of the Moon (1997).[14]
In late 1997, Cozy Powell approached Ritchie Blackmore to see if he would be interested in
reforming the Rising line-up of Rainbow. Due to everyone's prior commitments, this proposed
reunion was intended to last for just one tour, and by early 1998, both Dio and Blackmore had
almost given the project the green light. However, Powell's death in April 1998 brought about
the demise of the long-anticipated reunion. In the following decade many other rumours
appeared in various web sources about a future Dio/Blackmore Rainbow project, but both men
quickly dispelled these rumours as having no basis in fact. Dio's death from stomach cancer on
16 May 2010 made such a reunion impossible.
[edit] Rainbow songs after 1997
Many Rainbow songs have been performed live by former members of the band since the group's
split in 1984 and then in 1997, particularly former frontmen, Ronnie James Dio, Graham Bonnet
and Joe Lynn Turner in recent years. Also, Don Airey often plays 1979-1981 era songs during
his solo shows. Blackmore's Night occasionally performs one or two Rainbow songs live.
In 2002–2004 the Hughes Turner Project played a number of Rainbow songs at their concerts.
On 9 August 2007 Joe Lynn Turner and Graham Bonnet played a tribute to Rainbow show in
Helsinki, Finland. The concert consisted of songs from the 1979-1983 era.
Rainbow fans would be also interested in the White Noise DVD (featuring former Rainbow
singer Doogie White) titled "In The Hall Of The Mountain King" (recorded in 2004 and released
in 2005). It is the only release by the band White Noise. This was a DVD filmed on their support
stint with progressive rock band Uriah Heep. The show consisted of mostly Rainbow songs from
their 1995 album Stranger in Us All but featured arrangements of other songs including Mostly
Autumn's 'Never the Rainbow'.
In 2009, Joe Lynn Turner, Bobby Rondinelli, Greg Smith and Tony Carey created the touring
tribute band Over The Rainbow with Jürgen Blackmore (Ritchie's son) as the guitarist. Over The
Rainbow perform songs from every era of the band's history.
[edit] Band members
(Founding members listed in bold.)
Core member

Ritchie Blackmore – guitar (1975–1984, 1994–1997)
Other members
 Ronnie James Dio – lead vocals (1975–
1979)
 Craig Gruber – bass (1975)


Don Airey – keyboards, backing vocals
(1979–1981)
Graham Bonnet – lead vocals (1979–










Micky Lee Soule – keyboards (1975)
Gary Driscoll – drums (1975)
Tony Carey – keyboards (1975–1977)
Jimmy Bain – bass (1975–1977)
Cozy Powell – drums (1975–1980)
Mark Clarke – bass (1977)
Bob Daisley – bass, backing vocals
(1977–1978)
David Stone – keyboards (1977–1979)
Jack Green – bass (1978–1979)
Roger Glover – bass, backing vocals
(1979–1984)









1980)
Joe Lynn Turner – lead vocals, rhythm
guitar (1980–1984)
Bobby Rondinelli – drums (1980–1983)
David Rosenthal – keyboards (1981–
1984)
Chuck Burgi – drums (1983–1984,
1995–1997)
Doogie White – lead vocals (1994–
1997)
Greg Smith – bass, backing vocals
(1994–1997)
Paul Morris – keyboards (1994–1997)
John O'Reilly – drums (1994–1995)
John Micelli – drums (1997)
[edit] Discography
Main article: Rainbow discography










Ritchie Blackmore's Rainbow (1975)
Rising (1976)
On Stage (1977)
Long Live Rock 'n' Roll (1978)
Down to Earth (1979)
Difficult to Cure (1981)
Straight Between the Eyes (1982)
Bent Out of Shape (1983)
Finyl Vinyl (1986)
Stranger in Us All (1995)
[edit] Bibliography




Roy Davies, Rainbow Rising - The Story of Ritchie Blackmore's Rainbow (Helter Skelter,
2002)
Martin Popoff, Rainbow - English Castle Magic (Metal Blade, 2005)
Jerry Bloom, Black Knight - Ritchie Blackmore (Omnibus Press, 2006)
Jerry Bloom, Long Live Rock 'n' Roll Story (Wymer Publishing, 2009)
[hide]v · d · eRainbow
Ritchie Blackmore
Vocals: Ronnie James Dio · Graham Bonnet · Joe Lynn Turner · Doogie White
Bass: Craig Gruber · Jimmy Bain · Mark Clarke · Bob Daisley · Jack Green · Roger Glover ·
Greg Smith
Drums: Gary Driscoll · Cozy Powell · Bobby Rondinelli · Chuck Burgi · John O'Reilly · John
Miceli
Keyboards: Micky Lee Soule · Tony Carey · David Stone · Don Airey · David Rosenthal · Paul
Morris
Ritchie Blackmore's Rainbow · Rising · Long Live Rock 'n' Roll · Down to Earth ·
Studio albums Difficult to Cure · Straight Between the Eyes · Bent Out of Shape · Stranger in Us
All
EPs
Jealous Lover
Live albums
On Stage · Finyl Vinyl · Live in Germany/Live in Europe · Live in Munich 1977 ·
Deutschland Tournee 1976
The Best of Rainbow · The Very Best of Rainbow · 20th Century Masters - The
Compilation Millennium Collection: The Best of Rainbow · Classic Rainbow · Pot of Gold ·
albums
All Night Long: An Introduction · Catch the Rainbow: The Anthology · Winning
Combinations: Deep Purple and Rainbow
Video albums Live Between the Eyes/The Final Cut · Live in Munich 1977
Songs
Stargazer · Since You Been Gone · Street of Dreams
Related
articles
Discography · Deep Purple · Elf · Dio · Blackmore's Night · Black Sabbath ·
Martin Birch

This page was last modified on 20 September 2011 at 11:13.
The Animals
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
For other uses, see Animal (disambiguation).
The Animals
Posing for publicity in 1964: L-R Eric Burdon
(Vocals), Alan Price (Keyboards), Chas Chandler
(Bass), Hilton Valentine (Guitar), John Steel
(Drums)
Background information
Origin
Newcastle-upon-Tyne, England
Genres
Blues rock, psychedelic rock,
british blues, rhythm and blues
Years active
1962–1969
1975-1977
1983-1984
1992-1996
Labels
Columbia, Decca, MGM, Jet,
I.R.S., Atco Records, Atlantic
Records
Associated acts
Animals & Friends, Eric Burdon
and the Animals
Members
John Steel
Mick Gallagher
Pete Barton
John Williamson
Past members
Eric Burdon
Hilton Valentine
Chas Chandler
Alan Price
Dave Rowberry
Barry Jenkins
John Weider
Vic Briggs
Danny McCulloch
Zoot Money
Andy Summers
The Animals were an English music group of the 1960s formed in Newcastle upon Tyne during
the early part of the decade, and later relocated to London. The Animals were known for their
gritty, bluesy sound and frontman Eric Burdon, as exemplified by their number one signature
song "The House of the Rising Sun" as well as by hits such as "We Gotta Get Out of This Place",
"It's My Life" and "Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood". The band balanced tough, rock-edged pop
singles against rhythm and blues-oriented album material. They were known in the U.S. as part
of the British Invasion.
The Animals underwent numerous personnel changes in the mid-1960s and suffered from poor
business management. Under the name Eric Burdon and the Animals, they moved to
California and achieved commercial success as a psychedelic rock band, before disbanding at the
end of the decade. Altogether, the group had ten Top Twenty hits in both the UK Singles Chart
and the U.S. Billboard Hot 100.
The original lineup had a brief comeback in 1977 and 1983. There have been several partial
regroupings of the original era members since then under various names. The Animals were
inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1994.

[edit] History
[edit] First incarnation
Formed in Newcastle upon Tyne during 1962 and 1963 when Burdon joined the Alan Price
Rhythm and Blues Combo, the original line-up was Eric Burdon (vocals), Alan Price (organ and
keyboards), Hilton Valentine (guitar), John Steel (drums), and Bryan "Chas" Chandler
(bass).[1][2]
They were dubbed "animals" because of their wild stage act and the name stuck.[3] The Animals'
moderate success in their hometown and a connection with Yardbirds manager Giorgio
Gomelsky motivated them to move to London in 1964, in time to be grouped with the British
Invasion. They performed fiery versions of the staple rhythm and blues repertoire, covering
songs by Jimmy Reed, John Lee Hooker, Nina Simone, and others. Signed to the Columbia
Graphophone Company subsidiary of EMI, a rocking version of the standard "Baby Let Me
Follow You Down" (retitled "Baby Let Me Take You Home") was their first single.[4]
It was followed in June 1964 by the transatlantic number one hit "House of the Rising Sun".
Burdon's howling vocals and the dramatic arrangement created arguably the first folk rock
hit.[5][6] There is ongoing dispute regarding The Animals' inspiration for their arrangement of the
song, which has variously been ascribed to prior versions by Bob Dylan, folk singer Dave Van
Ronk, blues singer Josh White (who recorded it twice in 1944 and 1949), and singer/pianist Nina
Simone (who recorded it in 1962 on Nina at the Village Gate).
The Animals' two-year chart career, produced by Mickie Most, featured intense, gritty pop music
covers such as Sam Cooke's "Bring It On Home To Me" and the Nina Simone popularised
number "Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood". In contrast, their album tracks stayed with rhythm
and blues, with John Lee Hooker's "Boom Boom" and Ray Charles' "I Believe to My Soul" as
notable examples.
In November 1964, the group was poised to make their American debut on The Ed Sullivan
Show and begin a short residency performing regularly in theatres across New York City. The
group arrived at New York City's John F. Kennedy International Airport in a motorcade which
featured each member of the band riding with a model in the back seat of a Cadillac. The group
drove to their hotel accompanied by the occasional shrieks of girls who had chased them down
once they discovered who they were. The Animals sang "I'm Crying" and "The House of the
Rising Sun" to a packed audience of hysterical girls screaming throughout both performances on
Sullivan's show. In December, the MGM movie Get Yourself a College Girl was released with
the Animals headlining with The Dave Clark Five. The Animals sang a Chuck Berry song,
"Around and Around", in the movie.[7]
By May 1965 the group was starting to feel internal pressures. Price left due to personal and
musical differences as well as fear of flying on tour.[3] He went on to a successful career as a solo
artist and with the Alan Price Set. Mick Gallagher filled in for him on keyboards for a short time
until Dave Rowberry replaced him and was on hand for the hit song "We Gotta Get out of This
Place"[8] and "It's My Life". Around that time, an Animals Big Band made a one-time
appearance.[9]
Many of The Animals' hits had come from Brill Building songwriters recruited by Mickie Most;
the group, and Burdon in particular, felt this too creatively restrictive. As 1965 ended, the group
ended its association with Most, signed a new deal with their American label MGM Records for
the US and Canada, switched to Decca Records for the rest of the world and MGM Records
producer Tom Wilson, who gave them more artistic freedom.[10] In early 1966 MGM collected
their hits on The Best of The Animals; it became their best-selling album in the US. In February
1966, Steel left and was replaced by Barry Jenkins. A leftover cover of Goffin-King's "Don't
Bring Me Down" was the last hit as The Animals. For the single "See See Rider" the band
changed its name to Eric Burdon & The Animals. In September, the group disbanded. Burdon
recorded a solo album, called 'Eric Is Here', which also featured Burdon's UK #14 solo hit single,
"Help Me, Girl", which he heavily promoted on TV shows such as 'Ready, Steady, Go!' and 'Top
of the Pops' in late 1966. The single's B side, "See See Rider", was credited to 'Eric Burdon &
the Animals'. Eric Is Here was Burdon's final release for Decca Records.
By this time their business affairs "were in a total shambles" according to Chandler (who went
on to manage Jimi Hendrix) and the group disbanded. Even by the standards of the day when
artists tended to be financially naïve the Animals made very little money, eventually claiming
mismanagement and theft on the part of their manager Michael Jeffery.
[edit] Second incarnation
Eric Burdon & The Animals in 1967
Foreground: Eric Burdon
Background (L-R): Danny McCulloch, John Weider (in striped shirt), Vic Briggs, and Barry
Jenkins
A group with Burdon, Jenkins, and new sidemen John Weider (guitar/violin/bass), Vic Briggs
(guitar/piano), and Danny McCulloch (bass) were formed under the name Eric Burdon and the
Animals (or sometimes Eric Burdon and the New Animals) in December 1966 and changed
direction. The hard driving blues was transformed into Burdon's version of psychedelia as the
former heavy drinking Geordie (who later said he could never get used to Newcastle "where the
rain comes at you sideways") relocated to California and became a spokesman for the Love
Generation.
Some of this group's hits included "San Franciscan Nights",[11] "Monterey" (a tribute to the 1967
Monterey Pop Festival), and "Sky Pilot". Their sound was much heavier than the original group.
Burdon screamed more and louder on live versions of "Paint It Black" and "Hey Gyp". In 1968
they had a more experimental sound on songs like "We Love You Lil" and the 19-minute record
"New York 1963 - America 1968". The songs had a style of being silent at the beginning and
then becoming psychedelic and raw straight to the end with screaming, strange lyrics and
'scrubbing' instruments.
There were further changes to this lineup: George Bruno (also known as Zoot Money,
keyboards) was added in April 1968, and in July 1968 Andy Summers (guitar) - later of The
Police - replaced Briggs and McCulloch. By February 1969 these Animals had dissolved and the
singles "Ring of Fire" and "River Deep – Mountain High" were internationally released. Burdon
joined forces with a Latin group from Long Beach, California, called War.
[edit] Reunions of first incarnation
The original Animals line-up of Burdon, Price, Valentine, Chandler, and Steel reunited for a
benefit concert in Newcastle in 1968 and reformed in late 1975 to record again. Burdon later
said, nobody understood why they did this short reunion. They did a mini-tour in 1976 and shot a
few videos of their new songs like "Lonely Avenue" and "Please send me someone to Love".
They released the album in 1977 aptly called Before We Were So Rudely Interrupted. The album
received critical praise and Burdon and Valentine also recorded some demos at that time, which
were, however, never released.
[edit] 1983 reunion
On 12 December 1982, Burdon performed together with Alan Price and a complete line-up. They
reunited again in 1983 for the album Ark and a world concert tour, supplemented by Zoot Money
on keyboards, Nippy Noya on percussion, Steve Gregory on saxophone and Steve Grant on
guitar. The first single "The Night" reached #48 at the US Pop Singles and #34 at the
Mainstream Rock Charts. It was also a big hit in Greece. They released a second single called
"Love Is For All Time".
Their tour consisted of about one-third material from the original 1960s and two-thirds material
from Ark or other songs. The latter included songs like "Heart Attack", "No More Elmore" (both
released a year earlier by Burdon), "Oh Lucky Man" (from the 1973 soundtrack album to O
Lucky Man! by Price), "It's Too Late", "Tango", and "Young Girls" (later released on Burdon's
compilation, The Night). On 9 September they had their first gig in New York with a sold-out
audience at the Mid-Hudson Civic Center. The included also a Wembley Stadium concert on 31
December which was released on the Rip it To Shreds live album in 1984 after they had
disbanded again. The last concert at the Royal Oak Theatre in April 1984 was released on 27
February 2008 as Last Live Show. A film about the reunion tour was shot, but never released.
Chas Chandler died in 1996, putting an end to the full original line-up.[12]
[edit] Later incarnations
During the 1990s and 2000s there have been several groups calling themselves Animals in part:

In 1993 Hilton Valentine formed the Animals II and was joined by John Steel in 1994
and Dave Rowberry in 1999. Other members of this version of the band include Steve
Hutchinson, Steve Dawson and Martin Bland. From 1999 until Valentine's departure in
2001 the band toured as The Animals.

After Valentine left these Animals in 2001, Steel and Rowberry continued on as Animals
and Friends with Peter Barton, Jim Rodford and John Williamson. When Rowberry died
in 2003, he was replaced by Mickey Gallagher (who had briefly replaced Alan Price in
1965). Animals and Friends is still around and frequently plays gigs on a Color Line ship
that travels between Scandinavia and Germany.

In the 1990s Danny McCulloch, from the later-1960s Animals released several albums as
The Animals, with a great deal of acceptance. The albums contained covers of some
original Animals songs as well as new ones written by McCulloch.

Eric Burdon reformed the Animals with a new backing band in 1998 as Eric Burdon
and the New Animals. This was actually just a rename of an existing band he had been
touring with in various forms since 1990. Members of this new group included Dean
Restum, Dave Meros, Neal Morse and Aynsley Dunbar. Martin Gerschwitz replaced
Morse in 1999 and Dunbar was replaced by Bernie Pershey in 2001. In 2003 the band
started touring as Eric Burdon and the Animals. After the line-up changed in 2006
original guitarist Hilton Valentine reunited with the group for its 2008 tours. The group
also included Red Young, Paula O'Rourke and Tony Braunagle. After Burdon lost the
rights to the name, he formed a new band with completely different musicians.
[edit] Dispute as to ownership of band name
In 2008, an adjudicator determined that original Animals drummer John Steel owned "The
Animals" name in England, by virtue of a trademark registration Steel had made in relation to the
name. Eric Burdon had objected to the trademark registration, arguing that Burdon personally
embodied any goodwill associated with "The Animals" name. Burdon's argument was rejected,
in part based on the fact that he had billed himself as "Eric Burdon and The Animals" as early as
1967, thus separating the goodwill associated with his own name from that of the band.[13][14]
[edit] Legacy
The original Animals were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1994.[1] Their
influence can be heard in artists as varied as The Doors, The White Stripes, Joe Cocker, Bon
Jovi, The Cult, Frijid Pink, The Chocolate Watch Band, Bruce Springsteen, Tom Petty & The
Heartbreakers, Janis Joplin, David Johansen, and Fine Young Cannibals. In 2003, the band's
version of "The House of the Rising Sun" ranked #122 on Rolling Stone magazine's 500 Greatest
Songs of All Time list. Their 1965 hit single "We Gotta Get out of This Place" was ranked #233
on Rolling Stone's The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time list that was compiled in 2004. Both
songs are included in The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's 500 Songs that Shaped Rock and
Roll.[15]
[edit] Discography
Main article: The Animals discography
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The Animals (1964; The Animals; US)
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The Animals (1964; The Animals; UK)
The Animals on Tour (1965; The Animals; US)
Animal Tracks (1965; The Animals; UK)
Animal Tracks (1965; The Animals; US)
Animalisms (1966; The Animals; UK)
Animalization (1966; The Animals; US)
Animalism (1966; The Animals; US)
Eric Is Here (1967; Eric Burdon & The Animals; US)
Winds of Change (1967; Eric Burdon & The Animals)
The Twain Shall Meet (1968; Eric Burdon & The Animals)
Every One of Us (1968; Eric Burdon & The Animals; US)
Love Is (1968; Eric Burdon & The Animals)
Before We Were So Rudely Interrupted (1977; The Animals)
Ark (1983; The Animals)
[ [edit] Songs in film
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1964: Get Yourself a College Girl, "Blue Feeling", "Around and Around" aka "Round
and Round" (lip-sync)
1965: The Wednesday Play (Episode: Stand Up, Nigel Barton), "We Gotta Get out of
This Place"
1965: Pop Gear "House of the Rising Sun", "Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood" (lip-sync)
1967: Stranger in the House, "Ain't that so"
1983: Purple Haze, "When I Was Young"
1985: Men, "When I Was Young"
1986: The A-Team (Episode: Beneath The Surface), "We Gotta Get out of This Place"
1987: Hamburger Hill, "We Gotta Get out of This Place"
1988: 1969, "When I Was Young"
1992: American Me, "Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood"
1995: Casino, "House of the Rising Sun"
1998: The Waterboy, "The House of the Rising Sun"
1999: The Sopranos (Episode: Down Neck), "Don't Bring Me Down"
2000: Angels of the Universe, "Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood"
2000: Piso Porta, "Squeeze Her, Tease Her", "That's All I Am To You"
2001: 15 Minutes, "House of the Rising Sun"
2001: Blow Dry, "Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood"
2002: The West Wing (Episode: Process Stories), "House of the Rising Sun"
2004: Layer Cake, "Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood"
2004: The Life and Death of Peter Sellers, "It's My Life"
2004: Fahrenheit 9/11, "We Gotta Get out of This Place"
2007: Music Within, "We Gotta Get out of This Place"
2007: Zodiac, "Sky Pilot"
2007: Supernatural (Episode: Roadkill), "The House of the Rising Sun"
2007: My Name Is Earl (Episode: The Trial), "The House of the Rising Sun"
2007: My Name Is Earl (Episode: Early Release), "We Gotta Get out of This Place"
2008: Californication (Episode: Final of second season), "It's My Life"
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2009: Heroes (Season 3, Episode 21), "We Gotta Get out of This Place"
2009: Eastbound & Down (Season 1, Episode 6), "Sky Pilot"
2010: Rake (TV series) (Season1, Episode 8), "Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood"
2010: Ceremony, "Good Times"
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This page was last modified on 11 October 2011 at 06:31.
Eric Burdon
26 April 2008
Background information
Birth name Eric Victor Burdon
Born
11 May 1941 (age 70)
Walker, Newcastle upon Tyne,
England
Genres
Blues rock, psychedelic rock, rock
and roll, heavy metal, hard rock, funk
rock, rhythm and blues, jazz fusion
Occupations Musician, songwriter, actor, painter
Instruments Vocals
Years active 1960–present
Labels
SPV, Polydor, Universal, Sony BMG,
MGM, One Way, Repertoire Records,
Avenue, Rhino, Line, Teldec, Flying
Eye, Sanctuary, Columbia, EMI,
Decca
Members


Eric Burdon - vocals, percussion
Red Young - keyboards, piano, electric
piano, hammond b-3
 Brannen Temple - drums
 Billy Watts - guitar
 Terry Wilson - bass
Eric Victor Burdon (born 11 May 1941) is an English singer-songwriter best known as a
founding member and vocalist of rock band The Animals, and the funk rock band War[1] and for
his aggressive stage performance. He was ranked 57th in Rolling Stone's list - The 100 Greatest
Singers of All Time.[2]

[edit] Career
[edit] The Animals
Burdon was lead singer of The Animals, formed during 1962 in Newcastle, England. The
original band was the Alan Price Combo which formed in 1958.[3] They became the Animals
shortly after Burdon joined the band. They combined electric blues with rock and in the USA
were one of the leading bands of the British Invasion. Along with The Beatles, The Who, The
Rolling Stones, The Dave Clark Five, and The Kinks, the group introduced British music and
fashion. Burdon's powerful voice can be heard in The Animals singles "The House of the Rising
Sun", "Sky Pilot", "Monterey", "I'm Crying", "Boom Boom", "Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood",
"Bring It On Home to Me", "Baby Let Me Take You Home", "It's My Life", "We Gotta Get out
of This Place", "Don't Bring Me Down", and "See See Rider".
Eric Burdon and the Animals
By late 1966 the other original members, including keyboardist Alan Price, had left. Burdon and
drummer Barry Jenkins reformed the group as Eric Burdon and The Animals. This more
psychedelic incarnation featured future Family member John Weider and was sometimes called
Eric Burdon and the New Animals. Keyboardist Zoot Money joined during 1968 until they split
up in 1969. This group's hits included the ballad "San Franciscan Nights", the grunge–heavy
metal-pioneering "When I Was Young", "Monterey", the anti-Vietnam anthem "Sky Pilot" and
the progressive cover of "Ring of Fire".
In 1975 the original Animals reunited and recorded an album called Before We Were So Rudely
Interrupted, released in 1977 and overlooked due to the dawning of punk. In May 1983 The
Animals reunited with their original lineup and the album Ark was released on 16 June 1983,
along with the singles "The Night" and "Love Is For All Time". A world tour followed and the
concert at Wembley Arena, London, recorded on 31 December 1983 was released in 1984 as Rip
It To Shreds. Their concert at the Royal Oak Theatre in April 1984 was released in 2008 entitled
Last Live Show; the band members were augmented by Zoot Money, Nippy Noya, Steve Gregory
and Steve Grant. The original Animals broke up for the last time at the end of 1984.
Burdon at the Audimax in Hamburg, July 1973
[edit] War
During 1969, while living in San Francisco, Burdon joined forces with Californian funk rock
band War. The resulting album was entitled Eric Burdon Declares "War" which produced the
singles "Spill the Wine" and "Tobacco Road". A two-disc set entitled The Black-Man's Burdon,
was released later in September 1970. The singles from the double album, "Paint It, Black" and
"They Can't Take Away Our Music", had moderate success during 1971. During this time
Burdon collapsed on the stage during a concert, caused by an asthma attack, and War continued
the tour without him.
[edit] Solo career
Burdon began a solo career in 1971 with The Eric Burdon Band, continuing with a hard rock–
heavy metal–funk style. In August 1971 he recorded the album Guilty! which featured the blues
shouter Jimmy Witherspoon, and also Ike White of the San Quentin Prison Band. In 1973 the
band performed at the Reading Festival and in 1974 they travelled to New York. At the end of
1974 the band released the album Sun Secrets and this was followed by the album Stop in 1975.
Burdon moved to Germany in 1977 and recorded the album Survivor with a lineup including
guitarist Alexis Korner and keyboardist Zoot Money; the album also had a line-up of four
guitarists and three keyboard players and is known for its interesting album cover, which depicts
Burdon screaming.
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This page was last modified on 11 October 2011 at 06:31.
Blood, Sweat & Tears
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
This article is about the band. For their self-titled album, see Blood, Sweat & Tears (album). For
the Winston Churchill speech, see Blood, toil, tears and sweat.
This section has multiple issues. Please help improve it or discuss these issues on the
talk page.
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It needs additional citations for verification. Tagged since May 2010.
Its neutrality is disputed. Tagged since May 2010.
Blood, Sweat and Tears
Origin
New York City, New York, United
States
Genres
Pop rock, jazz rock, psychedelic rock
Years active 1967–1981, 1984–present
Labels
Columbia, ABC, Rhino, Sony,
Mobile Fidelity, Wounded Bird
Associated
acts
Spinning Wheel
Members
Steve Katz
Rob Paparozzi
Dave Gellis
Glenn McClelland
Georg Wadenius
Gary Foote
Andrea Valentini
Teddy Mulet
Steve Jankowski
Jens Wendelboe
Blood, Sweat & Tears (also known as "BS&T") is an American music group, originally formed
in 1967 in New York City. Since its beginnings in 1967, the band has gone through numerous
iterations with varying personnel and has encompassed a multitude of musical styles. What the
band is most known for, from its start, is the fusing of rock, blues, pop music, horn
arrangements, and jazz improvisation into a hybrid that came to be known as "jazz-rock". Unlike
"jazz fusion" bands, which tend toward virtuostic displays of instrumental facility and some
experimentation with electric instruments, the songs of Blood, Sweat & Tears merged the
stylings of rock, pop and R&B/soul music with big band, while also adding elements of 20th
Century Classical and small combo jazz traditions.
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[edit] The Al Kooper era
Al Kooper, Jim Fielder, Fred Lipsius, Randy Brecker, Jerry Weiss, Dick Halligan, Steve Katz,
Howard Levy, and Bobby Colomby formed the original band. The creation of the group was
inspired by the "brass-rock" ideas of The Buckinghams and its producer, James William
Guercio, as well as the early 1960s Roulette-era Maynard Ferguson Orchestra (according to
Kooper's autobiography).
"Blood, Sweat & Tears" was the name chosen by Al Kooper, inspired after a late-night gig in
which Kooper played with a bloody hand.[1] Kooper was the group's initial bandleader, having
insisted on that position based on his experiences with The Blues Project, his previous band with
Steve Katz, which had been organized as an egalitarian collective. Jim Fielder was from Frank
Zappa's Mothers Of Invention and had played briefly with Buffalo Springfield. But undoubtedly,
Kooper's fame as a high-profile contributor to various historic sessions of Bob Dylan, Jimi
Hendrix and others was the catalyst for the prominent debut of Blood, Sweat & Tears in the
musical counterculture of the mid-sixties.[citation needed]
Al, Bobby, Steve & Jim did a few shows as a quartet at the Cafe Au Go Go in New York City in
September 1967 opening for Moby Grape. Fred Lipsius then joined the others two months later.
A few more shows were played as a quintet, including one at the Fillmore East in New York.
Lipsius then recruited the other three, who were New York jazz horn players he knew. The final
lineup debuted late November ’67 at The Scene in NYC. The band was a hit with the audience,
who liked the innovative fusion of jazz with acid rock and psychedelia. After signing to
Columbia Records, the group released perhaps one of the most critically acclaimed albums of the
late 1960s, Child Is Father to the Man, featuring the Harry Nilsson song, "Without Her", and
perhaps Kooper's most memorable blues number, "I Love You More Than You'll Ever Know".
The album cover was considered quite innovative showing the band members sitting and
standing with child-sized versions of themselves. Characterized by Kooper's penchant for studio
gimmickry, the album slowly picked up in sales amidst growing artistic differences between the
founding members. Colomby and Katz wanted to move Kooper exclusively to keyboard and
composing duties, while hiring a stronger vocalist for the group.[1]
The music of Blood, Sweat & Tears slowly achieved commercial success alongside similarly
configured ensembles such as Chicago and the Electric Flag. Kooper was forced out of the group
and became a record producer for the Columbia label, but not before arranging some songs that
would be on the next BS&T album. The group's trumpeters, Randy Brecker and Jerry Weiss,
also left after the album was released, and were replaced by Lew Soloff and Chuck Winfield.
Brecker joined Horace Silver's band with his brother Michael, and together they eventually
formed their own horn-dominated musical outfits, Dreams and The Brecker Brothers. Jerry
Weiss went on to start the similarly-styled group Ambergris.
[edit] The David Clayton-Thomas era
Colomby and Katz then started looking for singers, considering Stephen Stills and Laura Nyro
before deciding upon David Clayton-Thomas, a Canadian singer, born in Surrey, England.
Reportedly, folk singer Judy Collins had seen him perform at a New York City club and was so
taken and moved by his performance that she told her friends Bobby Colomby and Steve Katz
about him (knowing that they were looking for a new lead singer to front the band).[1] With her
prodding, they came to see him perform and were so impressed with him that Clayton-Thomas
was offered the role of lead singer in a re-constituted Blood Sweat & Tears. Halligan took up the
organ chores and Jerry Hyman joined on trombone. New trumpeters Lew Soloff and Chuck
Winfield brought the band up to nine total members.
Eponymous 1968 album Blood, Sweat & Tears
Blood, Sweat & Tears, the group's self-titled second album, was produced by James William
Guercio and released in late 1968. The album was much more pop-oriented, featuring decidedly
fewer compositions from within the band. (David Clayton-Thomas, however, had already
mounted a solo career as a singer/songwriter over this same time period, beginning with an
album released in 1969 by Decca).[1] The record quickly hit the top of the charts, winning Album
of the Year at the Grammy Awards over The Beatles' Abbey Road, among other nominees.
Blood, Sweat & Tears spawned three major hit singles: a cover of Berry Gordy and Brenda
Holloway's "You've Made Me So Very Happy", Clayton-Thomas' "Spinning Wheel", and a
version of Laura Nyro's "And When I Die." All three singles reached #2 on Billboard magazine's
Hot 100 chart. The commercial and critical acclaim enjoyed by the band in 1969 culminated in
an appearance at the Woodstock Festival, in which the band enjoyed headliner status.[1]
Arguably, as a result of Al Kooper's departure, Blood, Sweat & Tears had difficulty maintaining
its status as a counterculture icon at a time when record company executives deemed this
characteristic importance as a tool to lure young consumers.[citation needed] This was compounded
by a United States Department of State-sponsored tour of Eastern Europe in 1970.[citation needed]
Any voluntary association with the government was highly unpopular at the time and the band
was ridiculed for it.[citation needed] In retrospect, it is now known that the State Department subtly
requested the tour in exchange for more amicability on the issuance of a visa to ClaytonThomas.[1]
After returning to the U.S., the group released Blood, Sweat & Tears 3; which was another
popular success,[citation needed] spawning hit singles with a cover of Carole King's "Hi-De-Ho" and
another Clayton-Thomas composition, "Lucretia MacEvil". While this was a successful attempt
to re-create the amalgam of styles found on the previous album, the band once again depended
almost exclusively on cover material. Album reviews sometimes focused solely upon the band's
willingness to work with the U.S. State Department, without bothering to discuss the actual
music.[1] Compounding the image problems of the band was a decision to play at Caesars Palace
on the Las Vegas Strip, widely seen at the time as a mainstream venue for acts that did not
engage in radical politics. In 1970, the band provided music for the soundtrack of the film
comedy The Owl and the Pussycat , which starred Barbra Streisand and George Segal further
damaging the group's underground reputation.
Following this period of controversy, the group reconvened with jazz writer Don Heckman
serving as their producer and, with Dave Bargeron replacing Jerry Hyman, recorded material that
would comprise their fourth album, BS&T 4. For the first time since the first album, Blood,
Sweat & Tears presented a repertoire of songs composed almost entirely from within the group.
Included on the album is a cover of former member Al Kooper's "Holy John (John The Baptist)".
Loaded with hooks and a wide variety of moods (featuring such songs as "Go Down Gamblin'",
"Lisa, Listen To Me", "High on a Mountain", "Redemption"), Blood, Sweat & Tears 4 broke into
the album charts, resulting in a gold record for the group. Unfortunately, none of the singles from
the album managed to land in the Top 30 on any of the singles charts, and the period after the
release of the fourth album began the group's commercial decline.[1]
[edit] The Jerry Fisher era
Blood, Sweat & Tears bassist Jaco Pastorius
Difficulties arose inside the group between its pop-rock and jazz factions, with Clayton-Thomas
refusing to pick sides and eventually choosing to leave in early January 1972 to continue the solo
career he had begun concurrently with his role in BS&T. He was briefly replaced by Bobby
Doyle, and then Jerry Fisher who went on to front the next generation of Blood, Sweat & Tears.
Fred Lipsius left and was replaced by jazz legend Joe Henderson (who did not stay long enough
to record), before Lou Marini settled into the new lineup. Another founding member, Dick
Halligan, also departed, replaced by jazz pianist Larry Willis, and Swedish guitarist Georg
Wadenius joined as lead guitarist around the same time. Amidst the personnel changes, a
Greatest Hits album was released, which hit the top 20 and eventually went gold. This record
would be the band's final gold album.[1]
During this period of time, a proliferation of bands employing the brass-rock stylings of the
group began to compete in the popular music marketplace. Among these groups were Chase,
Ides of March and Lighthouse, offering testimony to the legacy of Blood, Sweat & Tears.
The new edition of Blood, Sweat & Tears released New Blood, which found the group moving
into a more overtly jazz-fusion repertoire. The album broke through the top-40 charts (the last
BS&T LP to do so) and spawned a single ("So Long Dixie", chart peak: 44) that received some
airplay. Also included on the record was a cover version of Herbie Hancock's "Maiden Voyage,"
featuring the voice/guitar soloing of Georg Wadenius.
In mid-1973, Katz, who was growing increasingly uncomfortable with the group's leaning
towards jazz fusion, decided to leave. Winfield departed as well and was replaced by Tom
Malone. Blood, Sweat & Tears' next album, No Sweat (1973), continued in a jazz-fusion vein
and featured intricate horn work. The 1974 release Mirror Image saw the addition of
vocalist/saxophonist Jerry LaCroix (formerly of Edgar Winter's White Trash), sax player Bill
Tillman, bassist Ron McClure and the exodus of Tom Malone and longtime members Lew
Soloff and Jim Fielder. This recording features the adoption of a sound pitched between Philly
Soul and the mid-1970s albums by Herbie Hancock's Headhunters, along with aspirations to
Chick Corea's jazz-fusion group Return to Forever.
[edit] Reformations
Personnel changes continued (see roster below), capped by the return of David Clayton-Thomas
at the close of 1974 and the release of the comeback album New City in 1975. This album
charted higher than any of their previous albums since New Blood. This was chiefly the result of
an entry in the singles charts with a cover of the Beatles' "Got To Get You Into My Life". But it
still did not sell as well as albums from the group's 1969-71 commercial peak period. They
released a final album for Columbia Records, More Than Ever, before the last original band
member, Bobby Colomby, left in 1976. The band then signed a new contract with ABC Records,
with Colomby serving as the next album's executive producer and retaining sole ownership of
the group's name, despite his no longer appearing on stage with them. Their sole album for ABC,
Brand New Day, did not fare well in the charts and the group undertook a European tour in early
1978 to promote the album that ended abruptly after saxophonist Gregory Herbert died of a drug
overdose in Amsterdam on January 31, 1978. Rocked by this shocking turn of events, the group
returned home and temporarily ceased activity.
In 1979, David Clayton-Thomas decided to continue Blood, Sweat & Tears with an entirely new
lineup that consisted of Canadian musicians. The group signed to Avenue Records subsidiary
label LAX (MCA Records), and with producer and arranger Jerry Goldstein, recorded the album
Nuclear Blues. The album was yet another attempt to reinvent the group, showcasing the band in
a funk sound environment that recalled such acts as Tower of Power and LAX labelmates War
(with whom BS&T did several shows in 1980). The album, unfortunately, was regarded by many
Blood, Sweat & Tears fans as uncharacteristic of the group's best work. Following more touring,
including Australia, this incarnation of the group disbanded in 1981.
Since he did not own the rights to the Blood Sweat & Tears name, Clayton-Thomas attempted to
restart his failed solo career in 1983 after taking some time off. This caused complications during
his initial months on the road when promoters would book his group and instead use the Blood,
Sweat & Tears name on the marquee. Consequently, his manager at the time, Larry Dorr,
negotiated a licensing deal between himself and Bobby Colomby in 1984 for rights to tour using
the band's name.[2] For 19 years afterwards, Clayton-Thomas toured the concert circuit with a
constantly changing roster of players as "Blood, Sweat & Tears" until his final departure in 2004.
Clayton-Thomas now does occasional shows using only his name in promotional efforts.The
band continued on without Clayton-Thomas with what has been said is the greatest line up ever.
Larry Dorr has been the bands manager (and much more)for over 30 years now. Blood Sweat &
Tears is still one of the most popular touring acts of all time. At last count, the overall number of
BS&T members since the beginning is up around 130 total people—roster below.
On March 12 & 13, 1993, Al Kooper organized two shows at the Bottom Line in NYC that were
advertised as "A Silver Anniversary Celebration Of The Classic Album The Child Is Father To
The Man", which featured Al, Randy Brecker, Jim Fielder, Steve Katz and Fred Lipsius playing
together for the first time in twenty five years, accompanied by Anton Fig, Tom Malone, Lew
Soloff, John Simon and Jimmy Vivino, as well as a two woman chorus and string section.
The following year, in early February 1994, Al returned to the Bottom Line for his 50th birthday
celebration in which he played with members of his new band plus the Blues Project & BS&T.
The BS&T lineup at this show was the same as the 1993 Silver Anniversary show, with the
exception of Will Lee sitting in for Fielder and John Sebastian (ex-Loving Spoonful)
contributing harmonica. Colomby would not allow Kooper to use the name Blood, Sweat &
Tears, so the two reunions were billed as "Child Is Father of The Man". This second show
appeared as the CD Soul of a Man in 1995. According to page 20 of the CD's liner notes, Steve
Katz elected not to allow his performances onto the CD, which were digitally replaced by Jimmy
Vivino. Bassist Jim Fielder is said to have added some parts to the CD as well.
Blood, Sweat & Tears continues its heavy touring schedule throughout the world with its current
line-up of members, some of whom have been with the band previously during the past two
decades. Under the direction of Larry Dorr and founding member Bobby Colomby, the band has
enjoyed something of a resurgence. Blood, Sweat & Tears donates money through its "Elsie
Monica Colomby" music scholarship fund to deserving schools and students who need help in
prolonging their musical education, such as the victims of Hurricane Katrina.[3] The year 2007
witnessed the band's first world tour in a decade. Since late 2005, The band has been touring
world wide with a refeshed line up. 2011 saw BS&T and Chicago co-headlining a Jazz festival in
Stuttgart Germany. All of the band's albums, with the exception of Brand New Day, are currently
available on compact disc. BS&T's first four albums were reissued by Sony Records in
remastered editions (typically with bonus material), except for its third album, which has been
reissued by Mobile Fidelity. The later Columbia albums have been reissued by Wounded Bird
Records, and Rhino Records has reissued Nuclear Blues. Brand New Day was issued on CD in
Russia in 2002, although the disc may not have received authorization from copyright holders.
[edit] Roster of member musicians
Al Kooper : keyboards, vocals (1967–1968)
Randy Brecker : trumpet, flugelhorn (1967–
1968)
Jerry Weiss : trumpet, flugelhorn, backing
vocals (1967–1968)
[
Randy Andos : trombone (1986)
Tom Timko : sax, flute (1986–1987, 1995, 1998–2001, 2005–
2008, 2009–2010)
Tom DeFaria : drums (1985–1986)
John Conte : bass (1986–1987)
[edit] Discography
Albums
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Child Is Father to the Man (1968) Producer: John Simon (RIAA: Gold) #47
Blood, Sweat & Tears (1968) Producer: James William Guercio, 1970 Grammy Award
for Album of the Year. (RIAA: 4 x Multi-Platinum) #1
Blood, Sweat & Tears 3 (1970) Producer: Bobby Colomby and Roy Halee (RIAA: Gold)
#1
Blood, Sweat & Tears 4 (1971) Producers: Don Heckman, Roy Halee and Bobby
Colomby (RIAA: Gold) #10
New Blood (1972) Producer: Bobby Colomby #32
No Sweat (1973) Producer: Steve Tyrell #72
Mirror Image (1974) Producer: Henry Cosby #149
New City (1975) Producer: Jimmy Ienner #47
In Concert (1976) Producer: Bobby Colomby, Executive Producer: Jimmy Ienner
More Than Ever (1976) Producer: Bob James #165
Brand New Day (1977) Producers: Bobby Colomby and Roy Halee #205
Nuclear Blues (1980) Producer: Jerry Goldstein
Latin Fire (1985) [recorded 1980/81]
Live And Improvised (1991) [recorded 1975] Producer: Bobby Colomby. Associate
producer: Jimmy Ienner
Live (1994) [recorded live at The Street Scene, Los Angeles, on October 12, 1980.]
Compilation albums:

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


Greatest Hits (1972) (RIAA: 2 x Multi-Platinum) #19
Super Hits (1998)
What Goes Up! The Best of Blood, Sweat & Tears (1995) Compilation producer: Bob
Irwin
You've made me so happy (2001) Compilation: Sony Special Products
The Collection (2003) Compilation: Sony/Columbia
Soundtracks

The Owl and the Pussy Cat (Soundtrack) (1970) Producer: Thomas Z. Shepard
Charted singles
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"You've Made Me So Very Happy" (1969) #2
"Spinning Wheel" (1969) (Grammy Award-winning) #2
"And When I Die" (1969) #2
"Hi-De-Ho" (1970) #14
"Lucretia MacEvil" (1970) #29
"Lisa, Listen to Me" (1971) #73
"Go Down Gamblin'" (1971) #32
"So Long Dixie" (1972) #44
"Tell Me That I'm Wrong" (1974) #83
"Got To Get You Into My Life" (1975) #62
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This page was last modified on 10 October 2011 at 17:32.
UFO
Phil Mogg (left) and Pete Way (right) of UFO at the
Derbyshire rock and blues festival on October 3,
2006
Background information
Origin
London, England
Genres
Hard rock, heavy metal[1]
Years active
1969–1983
1984–1989
1992–present
Labels
Beacon, Nova, Rare Earth,
Chrysalis, EMI, Metal Blade,
Shrapnel, SPV Records
Lone Star
The Michael Schenker Group
Fastway
Associated acts
Waysted
The Plot
Scorpions
Website
UFO's official website
Members
Phil Mogg
Pete Way
Andy Parker
Paul Raymond
Vinnie Moore
Past members
See: Former members section
UFO are an English heavy metal and hard rock band, who were formed in 1969.[2] UFO became
a transitional group between early hard rock and heavy metal and the New Wave of British
Heavy Metal. UFO were ranked #84 on VH1's '100 Greatest Artists of Hard Rock'.[3]

[edit] History
[edit] Beginning (1969–1972)
Singer Phil Mogg, guitarist Mick Bolton, bassist Pete Way, and drummer Andy Parker formed
the band in August 1969. Originally taking the name Hocus Pocus, the group changed their name
in October 1969 to UFO in honour of the London club where they were spotted by Noel Moore,
who signed them to Beacon Records label, which was headed by Antiguan-born Milton Samuel.
Their eponymously titled first album debuted in 1970 and was a typical example of early hard
rock including a heavy version of the Eddie Cochran's classic "C'mon Everybody". Both UFO 1
and its follow-up UFO 2: Flying, were successful in Japan (especially the single "C'mon
Everybody" which became a huge hit there) and Germany (the song "Boogie For George," also
from the first album, reached #30 in German singles charts as well as "Prince Kajuku" from
Flying reached #26), but generated poor interest in Britain and America. Consequently, their
third effort, Live (later re-issued as UFO Lands In Tokyo), was originally only released in Japan
in 1971.
Part of UFO's early work was strongly influenced by space rock (their second album, including a
26-minute long title track and a 19-minute long opus "Star Storm", was subtitled One Hour
Space Rock) that was modestly popular at the time, but the band soon realised the style was
somewhat limited. In January, 1972 Mick Bolton left the group, and UFO set out to find a
guitarist who could provide the band with a more standard rock sound.
[edit] International success (1973–1978)
After brief trial runs with Larry Wallis (February - October 1972) and Bernie Marsden (he toured
with UFO in Europe and recorded a demo, "Give Her The Gun") the band recruited Michael
Schenker from Scorpions in June 1973. Schenker was only 18 at the time but was already a wellrespected guitarist. On a new label, Chrysalis Records, and with a new producer, Leo Lyons
(formerly of Ten Years After), UFO recorded Phenomenon in 1974, which debuted the band's
harder-edged guitar sound. Phenomenon was an instant classic, containing many fan favorites
such as "Doctor Doctor" (later a minor hit single as a live track) and "Rock Bottom" (which was
extended live to provide a showcase for Schenker). By the time of the Phenomenon tour, ex-Skid
Row guitarist Paul Chapman joined the group, but he left in January 1975 to form Lone Star.
Two later albums, Force It (July 1975) and No Heavy Petting (May 1976) (the last was recorded
with a regular keyboardist, Danny Peyronel as well as harmony vocalist and also songwriter),
and extensive touring brought UFO increased visibility with American audiences and increased
their following in the UK.
In July, 1976 the band recruited keyboardist and rhythm guitarist Paul Raymond from Savoy
Brown to make 1977's Lights Out. This album was the pinnacle of UFO's studio career[according to
whom?]
and is considered a genuine 1970s hard rock classic, containing songs such as "Too Hot To
Handle," "Lights Out," and the 7-minute opus "Love To Love." With Lights Out, the band
received substantial critical acclaim.[citation needed]
With their new-found success, the band went back into the studio to record Obsession in 1978.
Later that year, the band went on tour in the USA and recorded a live album, Strangers In The
Night, which was released in January 1979. Strangers was a critical and commercial success
reaching Number 7 in the UK album charts in February 1979.[4]
[edit] Schenker's departure (1978)
Along with Schenker's increasing alcohol abuse, tensions had begun to grow between Mogg and
Schenker in the late 1970s. Soon after UFO's final US show in Palo Alto, California in October
1978 Schenker left the band. He made a brief return to the Scorpions before going on to form his
own Michael Schenker Group.
[edit] Post-Schenker years (1979–1990)
After Schenker's exit, UFO rehired Paul "Tonka" Chapman on guitar who brought over unused
track ideas from Lone Star's drummer Dixie Lee. Shortly after they released their next LP, No
Place To Run in January, 1980. Produced by the former Beatles producer, George Martin No
Place To Run failed to match up to the success of its predecessors, though it fractionally missed
the UK Top 10. Paul Raymond left the band at the end of the No Place To Run tour and was
replaced by John Sloman from Uriah Heep for a couple of months and then by former Wild
Horses guitarist and keyboardist Neil Carter, who helped fill the void in the songwriting left by
Schenker's departure. Carter debuted with UFO on stage at the three-day Reading Festival on
August 23, 1980, when the band played as the Saturday night headline act.[5] At the beginning of
the following year, UFO released the self-produced The Wild, the Willing and the Innocent,
which had a lighter pop rock sound, which was popular at the time. The album achieved mild
success in the UK, reaching the UK Top 20, and the single "Lonely Heart" was released.
In February 1982 the band released Mechanix. It contained the popular song, "Back Into My
Life", which was a minor hit in the USA. However, the album was very successful in the UK,
where it reached the No.8, the band's highest ever placing. Later that year, founding member,
Pete Way left the band to form Fastway with Motörhead guitarist Eddie Clarke and then his own
band, Waysted. He was replaced by Talas bassist, Billy Sheehan. UFO released Making Contact
in 1983, but the album was a critical and commercial failure. Thus, that March, UFO decided to
disband.[6] The band played a UK farewell tour with Paul Gray (ex Eddie and the Hot Rods and
The Damned bassist). However, there was a hint that this might not be permanent, when UFO
released a compilation album featuring songs by UFO (as well as other groups featuring exmembers of UFO) entitled Headstone, the sleeve of which showed a headstone, denoting UFO
with their formation date but an incomplete end date.
This proved to be a short hiatus as, two years later, Mogg assembled a new UFO line-up,
featuring Paul Gray on bass again and Atomic Tommy M on guitar and released Misdemeanor.
This was followed by the 1988 EP Ain't Misbehavin'. Despite the renewed activity of the band,
neither release was financially successful and they officially disbanded again in 1989.[citation needed]
[edit] The reunion(s) (1991–2003)
In 1992, Mogg and Way decided to put a new UFO line-up together with Clive Edwards and
Laurence Archer in the band and released High Stakes & Dangerous Men. While only released
on a small independent label, High Stakes was enough to generate serious interest in a full-blown
reunion. The following year, the late 1970s UFO line-up – Mogg, Schenker, Way, Raymond and
Parker – reunited, and the resultant albums were Walk on Water (1995), Covenant (2000), and
Sharks (2002). This line-up went on a world tour (barring Parker's replacement by AC/DC's
Simon Wright on drums). However, tensions arose again, and Schenker left the band in the
middle of the tour. Thereafter, the other members went their separate ways again.[citation needed]
UFO toured again in 1998 with Schenker, Mogg, Way, Raymond and a new drummer. They
played at the Astoria Charing Cross Road London in 1998 or 1999.
Phil Mogg and Pete Way continued working together, however, and released two albums under
the Mogg/Way name in the late 1990s, – Edge of the World and Chocolate Box. In 2003 Michael
Schenker and Pete Way released The Plot with drummer Jeff Martin.
In 2000, Schenker rejoined UFO again and the band released the double CD Covenant (with
Aynsley Dunbar on drums), which contained a disc of new material and a disc of live classics. In
2002, the band recorded Sharks; shortly after Sharks was released, Schenker left the band yet
again and was replaced with Vinnie Moore.[7]
[edit] Vinnie Moore-era and beyond (2004–present)
In 2004 UFO released their seventeenth studio album You Are Here with their new permanent
guitarist Vinnie Moore and Jason Bonham on drums (intermittently). UFO recorded their live set
and released a double-DVD recording titled Showtime (2005) along with a double live CD on
SPV in November 2005, mixing a number of re-recorded studio songs. In November 2005, Andy
Parker returned to the band to play in the Piorno Rock Festival in Granada, Spain. UFO's
eighteenth studio album, titled The Monkey Puzzle, was released in 2006.
Andy Parker returned in early 2007 after recovering from leg surgery. On the 2008 tour, Pete
Way was unable to get a work visa to enter the United States, Rob De Luca (of Sebastian Bach's
band) filling in.[8]
UFO released their nineteenth studio album, The Visitor, in June 2009,[9] and followed with a
tour of the UK, but without Pete Way, who was suffering from a medical condition.[10] Bass
tracks on The Visitor were also played by Peter Pichl, and Pete Way was not credited as a band
member on The Visitor cover, nor was any other bassist. However, the album saw UFO's return
to the UK Top 100 album charts for the first time in almost 15 years.
In July 2009 UFO released a six CD live concert box set, containing six concerts between 1975
to 1982 as well as previously unreleased live songs.
On their 2011 tour, they were accompanied by Barry Sparks playing bass.
UFO are currently working on a twentieth studio album, which was said to be released in June
2011.[11] The album is still unreleased as of today.
[edit] Gallery

Phil Mogg

Pete Way

Vinnie Moore

Paul Raymond

Andy Parker
[edit] Band members
[edit] Current members





Phil Mogg – vocals (1969–1983, 1984–1989, 1992–present)
Pete Way – bass (1969–1982, 1988–1989, 1992–2004, 2005–present)
Andy Parker – drums (1969–1983, 1988–1989, 1993–1995, 2005–present)
Paul Raymond – keyboards, guitar (1976–1980, 1984–1986, 1993–1999, 2003–present)
Vinnie Moore – guitar (2004–present)
[edit] Former members









Mick Bolton – guitar (1969–1972)
Colin Turner – drums (1969)
Larry Wallis – guitar (1972)
Bernie Marsden – guitar (1973)
Michael Schenker – guitar (1973–1978, 1993–1995, 1997–1998, 2000, 2001–2004)
Paul Chapman – guitar (1974–1975, 1977, 1978–1983)
Danny Peyronel – keyboards, piano (1975–1976)
John Sloman – keyboards (1980)
Neil Carter – keyboards, guitar (1980–1983)
[edit] Discography
Main article: UFO discography



















UFO 1 (1970)
UFO 2: Flying (1971)
Phenomenon (1974)
Force It (1975)
No Heavy Petting (1976)
Lights Out (1977)
Obsession (1978)
Strangers in the Night (1979)
No Place to Run (1980)
The Wild, the Willing and the Innocent (1981)
Mechanix (1982)
Making Contact (1983)
Misdemeanor (1985)
Ain't Misbehavin' (1988)
High Stakes & Dangerous Men (1992)
Walk on Water (1995)
Covenant (2000)
Sharks (2002)
You Are Here (2004)


The Monkey Puzzle (2006)
The Visitor (2009)[2]
[edit] Videography


Too Hot To Handle (1994)
Showtime (2005)
[edit] References
[hide]v · d · eUFO
Phil Mogg · Andy Parker · Pete Way · Vinnie Moore · Paul Raymond
Mick Bolton · Michael Schenker · Jason Bonham · Paul Chapman · Danny Peyronel · John
Sloman · Neil Carter · Billy Sheehan · Simon Wright · Paul Gray · Tommy McClendon · Jim
Simpson · Laurence Archer · Clive Edwards · Aynsley Dunbar · John Norum · Bernie
Marsden · Larry Wallis · Robbie France · Barry Sparks · Jeff Kolmann · Colin Turner · Mike
Gray · Rick Sanford · Jeff Martin · Fabio Del Rio · George Bellas · Tony Glidewell · Eric
Gammans · Leon Lawson · David Jacobson · Jem Davis · Louis Maldonado · Matt Guillory
UFO 1 · UFO 2: Flying · Phenomenon · Force It · No Heavy Petting · Lights
Out · Obsession · No Place to Run · The Wild, the Willing and the Innocent ·
Mechanix · Making Contact · Misdemeanor · Ain't Misbehavin' · High Stakes &
Dangerous Men · Walk on Water · Covenant · Sharks · You Are Here · The
Monkey Puzzle · The Visitor
Studio
albums
Live · BBC Radio One Live in Concert · Strangers in the Night · Lights Out in
Live albums Tokyo · Live in Japan · T.N.T. · Heaven's Gate · On With the Action · Live in
Texas · Regenerator - Live 1982 · Live on Earth · Showtime
Space Metal · Headstone · Anthology · The Best of the Rest · The Essential UFO ·
Best of UFO: Gold Collection · X-Factor: Out There & Back · The Best of UFO:
Compilations
Ten Best Series · Flying: The Early Years 1970-1973 · An Introduction to UFO ·
The Best of UFO (1974-1983)
Related
articles

Discography
This page was last modified on 7 October 2011 at 05:16.
Pink Floyd
Pink Floyd in January 1968
Left to right: Mason, Barrett, Gilmour (seated),
Waters and Wright
Background information
Also known The Tea Set, The Pink Floyd Sound,
The Pink Floyd
as
Origin
London, England, UK
Genres
Progressive rock, psychedelic rock
Years active 1965–1996, 2005
Labels
Harvest, Capitol, Columbia, EMI
Website
pinkfloyd.com
Past members
Syd Barrett
Bob Klose
Nick Mason
Roger Waters
Richard Wright
David Gilmour
Pink Floyd were an English rock band that achieved worldwide success with their progressive
and psychedelic rock music. Their work is marked by the use of philosophical lyrics, sonic
experimentation, innovative album art, and elaborate live shows. Pink Floyd are one of the most
commercially successful and influential rock music groups of all time. They have sold over
200 million albums worldwide, including 74.5 million certified units in the United States. The
band was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1996. Since then they have continued
to enjoy worldwide fame.
The band originally consisted of students Roger Waters, Nick Mason, Richard Wright, and Syd
Barrett. Founded in 1965, they first became popular playing in London's underground music
scene in the late 1960s. Under Barrett's leadership they released two charting singles, "Arnold
Layne" and "See Emily Play", and a successful début album, The Piper at the Gates of Dawn
(1967). Guitarist and vocalist David Gilmour joined Pink Floyd as its fifth member in December
1967, several months prior to Barrett's departure from the group due to the latter's deteriorating
mental health. Following the loss of their principal songwriter, Pink Floyd bassist and vocalist
Roger Waters became the band's lyricist and conceptual leader, with Gilmour assuming lead
guitar, taking on most of the band's music composition, and sharing lead vocals. With this lineup Pink Floyd achieved worldwide critical and commercial success with their concept albums
The Dark Side of the Moon, Wish You Were Here, Animals and The Wall.
Wright left the group in 1979, and Waters in 1985, but Gilmour and Mason (subsequently
rejoined by Wright) continued to record and tour. Waters resorted to legal means to try to keep
them from performing as Pink Floyd, but the dispute was resolved with an out-of-court
settlement which allowed Gilmour and Mason to continue, and which also released Waters from
his contractual obligations to the band. Two further albums followed, A Momentary Lapse of
Reason and The Division Bell. Following almost two decades of acrimony the band reunited in
2005 for a single performance, at the charity concert Live 8. Wright died in 2008. Surviving
members Waters, Gilmour and Mason reunited for one of Roger Waters' The Wall Tour shows
on 12 May 2011 at the O2 Arena in London; Gilmour performed "Comfortably Numb" along
with Waters and "Outside the Wall" with Mason and Waters.

[edit] Formation and early years (1963–1967)
[edit] The beginning
Roger Waters and Nick Mason met while studying architecture at the Regent Street Polytechnic
in London.[1] The pair first played together in a group formed by Keith Noble and Clive Metcalfe
together with Noble's sister Sheilagh. They were later joined by fellow student Richard Wright,
becoming a sextet named Sigma 6, the first band to feature Waters on "rudimentary" lead guitar,
Wright on rhythm guitar, and Mason on drums.[2] Wright's girlfriend was a regular guest artist.
The band initially performed during private functions, rehearsing in a tearoom in the basement of
Regent Street Polytechnic. They covered songs by The Searchers and material written by fellow
student Ken Chapman, who became their manager and songwriter.[3]
In September 1963 Waters and Mason moved into a flat at 39 Stanhope Gardens, near Crouch
End, London, owned by Mike Leonard, a part-time tutor at the Regent Street Polytechnic and
Hornsey College of Art. Leonard was a designer of light machines (perforated discs spun by
electric motors to cast patterns of lights on the walls)[nb 1] and for a time played keyboard with
them using the front room of his flat for rehearsals.[4] Mason later moved out of the flat, while
accomplished guitar player Bob Klose moved in. Sigma 6 went through a number of short-lived
names, including The Meggadeaths,[nb 2] The (Screaming) Abdabs,[nb 3] Leonard's Lodgers, and
The Spectrum Five before settling on The Tea Set.[nb 4][11][12] While Metcalfe and Noble left to
form their own band,[13] Klose and Waters were joined at Stanhope Gardens by Syd Barrett in
1964.[13] Then aged 17,[14] Barrett had arrived in London in the autumn of 1963 to study at the
Camberwell College of Art.[15] Waters and Barrett were childhood friends; the bassist had often
visited Barrett as he played guitar at his mother's house.[16] In his book Mason said this about
Barrett, "In a period when everyone was being cool in a very adolescent, self-conscious way,
Syd was unfashionably outgoing; my enduring memory of our first encounter is the fact that he
bothered to come up and introduce himself to me."[15]
After The Tea Set lost Noble and Metcalfe's vocal abilities, Klose introduced the band to Chris
Dennis, a technician with the Royal Air Force.[18] It was during Dennis's tenure that the band was
first referred to as "The Pink Floyd Sound", created by Barrett on the spur of the moment when
he discovered that another band, also named The Tea Set, were to perform at one of their gigs.
(The name is derived from the given names of two blues musicians whose Piedmont blues
records Barrett had in his collection, Pink Anderson and Floyd Council).[19] At around the same
time Dennis was posted to Bahrain, thrusting Barrett into the spotlight as front-man.[18]
The Pink Floyd Sound became the resident band at the Countdown Club, near Kensington High
Street in London, where from late night until early morning they played three sets of 90 minutes.
According to Mason, this period "... was the beginning of a realization that songs could be
extended with lengthy solos."[21] An audition for ITV's Ready Steady Go! soon followed (they
were invited by the programme's producers to return the following week), as did another club,
and two rock contests. After pressure from his father, and advice from his college tutors, Bob
Klose quit Pink Floyd in 1966[22] and Barrett took over on lead guitar.[23] Playing mostly rhythm
and blues songs they began to receive paid bookings, including one for a performance at the
Marquee Club in March 1966 where they were watched by Peter Jenner. A lecturer at the
London School of Economics, Jenner was impressed by the acoustic effects Barrett and Wright
created[24] and, with his business partner and friend Andrew King, became their manager.[25] The
pair had little experience of the music industry and used inherited money to set up Blackhill
Enterprises, purchasing new instruments and equipment for the band including a Selmer PA
system.[26] Under their guidance the band became part of London's underground music scene,
playing at venues including All Saints Hall and The Marquee.[27] While performing at the
Countdown Club the band had experimented with long instrumental excursions and they began
to expand upon these with rudimentary but visually powerful light shows, projected by coloured
slides and domestic lights.[28] To celebrate the launch of the London Free School's magazine
International Times, they performed in front of a 2,000-strong crowd at the opening of The
Roundhouse, attended by celebrities including Alexander Trocchi, Paul McCartney, and
Marianne Faithfull.[29] Jenner and King's diverse array of social connections helped gain the band
important coverage in The Financial Times and The Sunday Times.[30]
A Hapshash and the Coloured Coat poster for Pink Floyd at the UFO Club
[edit] Signing with EMI
According to Mason, the psychedelic movement had "taken place around us—not within us".[38]
Nevertheless, The Pink Floyd Sound were present at the head of a wave of interest in
psychedelic music and what would later be called space rock,[39] and began to attract the
attention of the music industry.[40] While in negotiations with record companies Joe Boyd and
booking agent Bryan Morrison arranged for, and funded, the recording of several songs at Sound
Techniques in West Hampstead, including "Arnold Layne" and a version of "Interstellar
Overdrive",[40] and for the production of a short music film for "Arnold Layne" in Sussex.
Despite early interest from Polydor the band signed with Electric and Musical Industries, with a
£5,000 advance. Boyd was not included in the deal.[41]
"Arnold Layne" became Pink Floyd's (the definite article seems to have been dropped from the
band's name at some point in 1967)[42] first single, released on 11 March 1967.[43] Its references
to cross-dressing saw it banned by several radio stations, but some creative manipulation at the
shops which supplied sales figures to the music industry meant that it peaked in the UK charts at
number 20.[44]
On 29 April 1967 they headlined a famous all-night event called The 14 Hour Technicolour
Dream at the Alexandra Palace, London, to raise funds for the counter-cultural newspaper
International Times. Other artists included Yoko Ono and John Lennon. They played
"Astronomy Domine", "Arnold Layne", "Interstellar Overdrive", "Nick's Boogie", and other
material from what was to become their debut album, The Piper at the Gates of Dawn.
Serendipitously, the band appeared just as the sun was beginning to rise at around five o'clock in
the morning.[45]
All four members of the band had by then abandoned their studies or jobs, they upgraded their
ageing Bedford van to a Ford Transit,[46] using it to travel to over 200 gigs in 1967 (a tenfold
increase on the previous year). They were joined by road manager Peter Wynne Willson, with
whom Barrett had previously shared a flat.[47] Willson updated the band's lighting rig, with some
innovative ideas including the use of polarisers, mirrors, and stretched condoms.[48] "See Emily
Play" was the group's second single and it was released on 16 June.[49] It was premièred at the
Queen Elizabeth Hall in London in May that year,[50] where the band also used a device called an
Azimuth co-ordinator. They performed on the BBC's Look of the Week, where an erudite and
engaging Waters and Barrett faced rigorous questioning from Hans Keller.[51] The single fared
slightly better than "Arnold Layne" and after two weeks was at number 17 in the charts. They
were invited to appear on the BBC's Top Of The Pops, which was immensely popular but which
controversially required artists to simply mime their singing and playing. They returned after the
single climbed to number six, but a scheduled third appearance was cancelled when Barrett
refused to perform.[49]
It was about this time the rest of the band first noticed changes in Barrett's behaviour.[52] By early
1967 he was regularly using LSD[53] and, at an earlier show in the Netherlands, Mason observed
him to be "completely distanced from everything going on, whether simply tripping or suffering
from a more organic neural disturbance I still have no idea."[52]
[edit] The Piper at the Gates of Dawn
Main article: The Piper at the Gates of Dawn
Pink Floyd's contract with EMI had been negotiated by their agent Bryan Morrison and EMI
producer Norman Smith. They were obliged[54] to record their first album at EMI's Abbey Road
Studios in London.[55] There they experimented with musique concrète and were at one point
invited to watch The Beatles record "Lovely Rita".[56] In his 2005 autobiography Mason recalled
that the sessions were relatively trouble-free, Smith disagreed stating that Barrett was
unresponsive to his suggestions and constructive criticism.[57] The Piper at the Gates of Dawn
was released in August 1967 and Pink Floyd continued to draw huge crowds at the UFO Club,
but Barrett's deterioration was by then giving them serious concern. The rest of the band initially
hoped that his erratic behaviour would be a passing phase but some, including Jenner and June
Child,[nb 5] were more realistic:
I found him in the dressing room and he was so ... gone. Roger Waters and I got him on his feet,
we got him out to the stage ... and of course the audience went spare because they loved him.
The band started to play and Syd just stood there. He had his guitar around his neck and his arms
just hanging down.[59]
To their consternation the band were forced to cancel their appearance at the prestigious National
Jazz and Blues Festival, informing the music press that Barrett was suffering from nervous
exhaustion. Jenner and Waters arranged for Barrett to see a psychiatrist, which he did not attend,
and a stay in Formentera, with Sam Hutt a doctor well-established in the underground music
scene, led to no visible improvement. A few dates in September were followed by the band's first
tour of the United States.[60] Blackhill's late application for work permits forced the band to
cancel several dates[61] and Barrett's condition grew steadily worse.[62] He detuned his guitar
during a performance at the Winterland Ballroom, causing the strings to come off and during a
recording for The Pat Boone Show he confounded the director by miming the song perfectly
during the rehearsal, then standing motionless during the take. King quickly curtailed the band's
US visit, sending them home on the next flight.[63]
Shortly after their return from the US the band supported Jimi Hendrix's tour of England[63] but
Barrett's depression worsened the longer the tour continued,[64] his absence on one occasion
forced the band to book David O'List as his replacement.[60] Barrett's position as frontman was
becoming less secure. Wynne Willson left his role as lighting manager and allied himself with
the guitarist.[65] Pink Floyd released the single "Apples and Oranges" in November 1967 in the
UK (although not in the US[66]). Barrett's condition had reached a crisis point and they responded
by adding a new member to their line-up.[60]
[edit] Classic line-up (1968–1979)
[edit] Gilmour replaces Barrett
Barrett had recently suggested adding four new members: in the words of Waters, "two freaks
he'd met somewhere. One of them played the banjo, the other the saxophone ... [and] a couple of
chick singers".[67] In December 1967 the band asked David Gilmour to become the fifth member
of Pink Floyd, which Gilmour accepted.[68] Gilmour was already acquainted with Barrett, having
studied together at Cambridge Tech in the early 1960s.[16] The two had performed at lunchtimes
together with guitars and harmonicas, and later hitch-hiked and busked their way around the
south of France.[69] In 1965, while a member of Joker's Wild, Gilmour had watched The Tea
Set.[70] Barrett reluctantly agreed to Gilmour's addition to Pink Floyd. Steve O'Rourke (an
assistant to Bryan Morrison) gave Gilmour a room at his house and a salary of £30 per week.[71]
Gilmour immediately went out and bought a custom-made yellow Fender Stratocaster from a
music shop in Cambridge (the instrument became one of Gilmour's favourite guitars throughout
his career with Pink Floyd) and in January 1968 he was announced as the band's newest
member.[72] To the general public he was then the second guitarist, the fifth member of Pink
Floyd, and the group originally intended to keep Barrett in the group as a non-performing
songwriter.[73] According to Jenner, "The idea was that Dave would be Syd's dep. and cover for
his eccentricities. And when that got to be not workable, Syd was just going to write. Just to try
to keep him involved, but in a way where the others could work and function."[74] One of
Gilmour's first duties was to pretend to play a guitar on an "Apples and Oranges" promotional
film.[72] In a demonstration of his frustration at being effectively sidelined, Barrett tried to teach
the band a new song, "Have You Got It Yet?", but changed the structure on each performance—
making it impossible for them to learn.[75]
Working with Barrett eventually proved too difficult. Matters came to a head on the way to a
performance in Southampton. When somebody in the van asked if they should collect Barrett,
the response was "No, fuck it, let's not bother".[76] Waters later admitted "He was our friend, but
most of the time we now wanted to strangle him".[77] In early March 1968 Pink Floyd met with
Peter Jenner and Andrew King of Blackhill Enterprises, business partners at the time, to discuss
the band's future. Barrett agreed to leave Pink Floyd and Pink Floyd "agreed to Blackhill's
entitlement in perpetuity" with regard to "past activities".[78] Pink Floyd's partnership with Peter
Jenner and Andrew King was dissolved in March 1968;[79] Jenner and King, who believed
Barrett to be the creative genius of Pink Floyd, decided to represent him and end their
relationship with Pink Floyd. Bryan Morrison then agreed that Steve O'Rourke should become
Pink Floyd's manager.[80] The formal announcement about the departure of Barrett was made on
6 April 1968[81] although, for a short period after his de facto removal, Barrett still turned up to
the occasional gig, apparently confused as to what was happening.[77] Barrett had been their main
songwriter and Gilmour mimed to his voice on the group's European television appearances but,
while playing on the university circuit, Waters and Wright created their own new material, such
as "It Would Be So Nice" and "Careful With That Axe, Eugene". They were joined by road
manager Peter Watts before touring Europe in 1968.[82]
[edit] A Saucerful of Secrets
Main article: A Saucerful of Secrets
For their second studio album the band returned with Smith to Abbey Road Studios. Several
songs featuring Barrett had already been laid down, including "Jugband Blues" (his final
contribution to their discography). Waters contributed three songs, "Let There Be More Light",
"Corporal Clegg", and "Set the Controls for the Heart of the Sun" (which includes guitar work by
Gilmour and Barrett). Wright composed "See-Saw" and "Remember a Day". Encouraged by
Smith some of the new material was recorded at their homes, continuing the type of
experimentation seen on The Piper at the Gates of Dawn. Smith remained unconvinced by their
musical style, but when Mason struggled to perform on "Remember a Day", he stepped in as his
replacement.[83] Wright recalled Smith's attitude about the sessions, "Norman gave up on the
second album ... he was forever saying things like, 'You can't do twenty minutes of this
ridiculous noise.'"[84] Neither Waters nor Mason could read music so to create the album's title
track, "A Saucerful of Secrets", they invented their own system of notation; Gilmour later
described this as looking "... like an architectural diagram".[85]
A Saucerful of Secrets was released in June 1968. The album cover was designed by Storm
Thorgerson and Aubrey Powell of Hipgnosis. Record Mirror urged listeners to "forget it as
background music to a party"[85] and John Peel claimed that the album was "...like a religious
experience...".[85] NME, however, viewed the title track as "...long and boring, and has little to
warrant its monotonous direction".[85] [nb 6] Upon the album's release Pink Floyd performed at the
first free Hyde Park concert, organised by Blackhill Enterprises, alongside Roy Harper and
Jethro Tull. The band considered Morrison's assistant, Steve O'Rourke, as a "great deal-maker"
whose business acumen overshadowed his lack of interest in aesthetic matters and, when
Morrison sold his business to NEMS Enterprises, O'Rourke became the band's personal manager.
This also enabled the band to take complete control of their artistic outlook. They returned to the
US for their first major tour, accompanied by Soft Machine and The Who.[87][88]
[edit] Soundtracks
In 1968 the band recorded the score for the film The Committee. Just before Christmas 1968 they
released "Point Me At The Sky", which was no more successful than the two singles they had
released since "See Emily Play". "Point Me At The Sky" would be the band's last single for
several years.[89] In 1969 they recorded the score for Barbet Schroeder's film More. The
soundtrack proved important; not only did it pay well but, along with A Saucerful of Secrets,[90]
the material they created became part of their live shows for some time thereafter. A tour of the
UK ended at the Royal Festival Hall in July 1969, during which an electric shock caused by poor
grounding sent Gilmour flying across the stage.[89] The performances, built around two long
pieces called The Man and The Journey,[91] were backed with performance art created by artist
Peter Dockley. Some of the sound effects were later used on 1970's "Alan's Psychedelic
Breakfast".[89] While composing the soundtrack for Zabriskie Point, for director Michelangelo
Antonioni, the band stayed at a luxury hotel in Rome. Waters has since claimed that, but for
Antonioni's continuous changes to the music, the work could have been completed in less than a
week. Eventually he used only three of their recordings, in addition to material from the Grateful
Dead, The Youngbloods, Patti Page, and the Rolling Stones. One of the pieces turned down by
Antonioni, called "The Violent Sequence", later became "Us and Them", included on Pink
Floyd's 1973 The Dark Side of the Moon. The band also worked on the soundtrack for a
proposed cartoon series called Rollo but a lack of funds meant that it was never produced.
Waters also collaborated with Ron Geesin when they scored the soundtrack to the 1970 film The
Body.[92]
[edit] Ummagumma and Atom Heart Mother
Main articles: Ummagumma and Atom Heart Mother
Roger Waters performing with Pink Floyd at Leeds University in 1970
Ummagumma presented a departure from their previous work and contains live performance and
older compositions. Released as a double-LP on EMI's Harvest label, the first two sides
contained live performances recorded at Manchester College of Commerce and at Mother's Club
in Birmingham. The second LP contained a single experimental contribution from each band
member. Ummagumma was released to positive reviews in October 1969.[93]
Atom Heart Mother quickly followed Ummagumma in the second half of 1970. The band's
previous LPs were recorded using a four-track system, but Atom Heart Mother was their first
eight-track album.[94] An early version was premièred in France in January but disagreements
over the mix prompted the hiring of Ron Geesin to work out the sound issues. Geesin worked for
about a month to improve the score but, with little creative input from the band, production was
troublesome; it was eventually completed with the aid of John Aldiss. Norman Smith was
credited as an executive producer and the album marked his final contribution to the band's
discography.[95] Gilmour is generally dismissive of Atom Heart Mother and once described it as
"a load of rubbish",[96] although in 2001 he said it "was a good thing to have attempted, but I
don't really think the attempt comes off that well".[97] Waters was similarly critical, claiming that
he would not mind if it were "thrown into the dustbin and never listened to by anyone ever
again."[96] Atom Heart Mother was hugely successful in the UK[98] and was premièred at the Bath
Festival on 27 June 1970.[99]
In 1971 Pink Floyd took second place in a readers poll in Melody Maker and for the first time
were making a profit. In New Orleans the theft of equipment worth about $40,000 almost
crippled the band's finances but, although the local police were unhelpful, hours after the band
notified the FBI the equipment was returned. Mason and Wright became fathers and bought
homes in London while Gilmour, still single, moved to a 19th-century farm in Essex. Waters
installed a home recording studio at his house in Islington in a converted tool-shed at the back of
his garden.[100]
[edit] Meddle
Main article: Meddle
Returning from touring Atom Heart Mother at the start of 1971 the band began working on new
material.[101] Lacking a central theme they attempted several largely unproductive
experiments;[102] engineer John Leckie described the sessions as often beginning in the afternoon
and ending early the next morning, "during which time nothing would get done. There was no
record company contact whatsoever, except when their label manager would show up now and
again with a couple of bottles of wine and a couple of joints."[103] The band spent long periods
working on simple sounds, or a particular guitar riff. They also spent several days at Air Studios,
attempting to create music using a variety of household objects, a project which would be
revisited between The Dark Side of the Moon and Wish You Were Here.[104] Meddle's production
was spread over a considerable period of time; the band recorded in the first half of April, but in
the latter half played at Doncaster and Norwich before returning to record at the end of the
month. In May they split their time between sessions at Abbey Road, rehearsals and concerts
across Great Britain. June and July were spent mainly performing at venues across Europe
whereas August was spent in the far east and Australia, returning to Europe in September.[105]
Meddle was released on 30 October 1971 in the US and 13 November in the UK,[nb 7] while the
band were touring in the US.[109] Rolling Stone's Jean-Charles Costa wrote "Meddle not only
confirms lead guitarist David Gilmour's emergence as a real shaping force with the group, it
states forcefully and accurately that the group is well into the growth track again",[110] and NME
called it "an exceptionally good album". Melody Maker's Michael Watts was underwhelmed,
claiming the album was "a soundtrack to a non-existent movie" and shrugged it off as "so much
sound and fury, signifying nothing".[111][112] Meddle is sometimes considered to be a transitional
album between the Barrett-influenced band and the modern Pink Floyd.[113][114]
The group's other releases around this period, More and Zabriskie Point, were soundtracks and
Atom Heart Mother was influenced as much by Ron Geesin and the session artists as it was by
the band.[115] The band again worked with Barbet Schroeder on the film La Vallée, for which a
soundtrack album was released called Obscured by Clouds. The material was composed in about
a week at the Château d'Hérouville near Paris and, upon its release, was their first to break into
the top 50 on the US Billboard chart.[116] At about the same time the band also produced the
compilation album Relics.[117]
[edit] The Dark Side of the Moon
Main article: The Dark Side of the Moon
A live performance The Dark Side of the Moon at Earls Court, shortly after its release in 1973. (lr) David Gilmour, Nick Mason, Richard Wright, Roger Waters
The band's next album, titled The Dark Side of the Moon (an allusion to lunacy, rather than
astronomy),[118] was recorded between May 1972 and January 1973 with EMI staff engineer
Alan Parsons at Abbey Road.[119][120] Late in the album's production Parsons was assisted by
producer Chris Thomas, who became responsible for significant changes such as the echo used
on "Us and Them".[121][122] The album's packaging was designed by Hipgnosis and bore George
Hardie's iconic refracting prism on the cover.[123] Since Barrett's departure the burden of lyrical
composition had fallen mostly on Waters[124] and he is therefore credited as the author of the
album's lyrics.[125] The band filmed studio footage for Pink Floyd: Live at Pompeii[126] before
beginning a tour of Europe in 1972.[127]
The Dark Side of the Moon was released in March 1973 and became an instant chart success in
Britain and throughout Western Europe.[128] The critical reaction was generally enthusiastic.
Melody Maker's Roy Hollingworth described side one as "...so utterly confused with itself it was
difficult to follow," but praised side two writing, "The songs, the sounds, the rhythms were solid
and sound, Saxophone hit the air, the band rocked and rolled, and then gushed and tripped away
into the night."[129] In his 1973 album review for Rolling Stone magazine, Lloyd Grossman
wrote, "a fine album with a textural and conceptual richness that not only invites, but demands
involvement."[130] Throughout March 1973 it featured as part of their US tour, including a
midnight performance at Radio City Music Hall in New York City on 17 March.[131][132]
The success of the album brought previously unknown wealth to all four members of the band.
Richard Wright and Roger Waters bought large country houses while Nick Mason became a
collector of expensive cars.[133] Much of the album's early state-side success has been attributed
to the efforts of Pink Floyd's US record company, Capitol Records. Newly appointed chairman
Bhaskar Menon reversed the relatively poor performance of the band's previous US releases but,
disenchanted with Capitol, the band and manager O'Rourke negotiated a new contract with
Columbia Records. The Dark Side of the Moon was the last album that Pink Floyd were obliged
to release before formally signing a new contract.[134] Menon's efforts to secure a contract
renewal with Pink Floyd were in vain and the band signed for Columbia, with a reported advance
fee of US$1M ($4,942,149 today), while in Britain and Europe they continued to be represented
by Harvest Records.[135]
[edit] Wish You Were Here
Main article: Wish You Were Here (Pink Floyd album)
Pink Floyd returned to the studio in January 1975.[136] Alan Parsons had declined the band's offer
to continue working with them, instead becoming successful in his own right with The Alan
Parsons Project,[121] and so the band turned to Brian Humphries with whom they had already
worked on More.[137] The group initially found it difficult to devise any new material, especially
as the success of The Dark Side of the Moon had left all four physically and emotionally drained.
Richard Wright later described these early sessions as "falling within a difficult period" and
Waters found them "torturous".[138] Gilmour was more interested in improving the band's
existing material. Mason's marriage was failing leaving him in a general malaise and with a
sense of apathy, both of which interfered with his drumming.[138]
It was a very difficult period I have to say. All your childhood dreams had been sort of realised
and we had the biggest selling records in the world and all the things you got into it for. The girls
and the money and the fame and all that stuff it was all ... everything had sort of come our way
and you had to reassess what you were in it for thereafter, and it was a pretty confusing and sort
of empty time for a while ...[139]
Despite the lack of creative direction Waters began to visualise a new concept after several
weeks.[138] During 1974 they had sketched out three new compositions[140] and had performed
them at a series of concerts in Europe.[136] These new compositions became the starting point for
a new album whose opening four-note guitar phrase, composed entirely by accident by
Gilmour,[141] reminded Waters of the lingering ghost of former band-member Syd Barrett.[142]
The songs provided an apt summary of the rise and fall of their former band mate:[143] "Because I
wanted to get as close as possible to what I felt ... that sort of indefinable, inevitable melancholy
about the disappearance of Syd."[142] While the band were working on the album Barrett made an
impromptu visit to the studio,[141][144][145] during which Thorgerson recalled that he "sat round
and talked for a bit but he wasn't really there."[146] He had changed in appearance and the band
did not initially recognise him, Waters was reportedly deeply upset by the experience.[147] Barrett
eventually left without saying goodbye and none of the band members ever saw him again, apart
from a run-in between Waters and Barrett a couple of years later.[148] Some of the material also
contained barely veiled attacks on the music business. "Raving and Drooling" and "Gotta Be
Crazy" had no place in the new concept and were set aside.[149] Storm Thorgerson concealed the
album cover artwork with a dark-coloured shrink-wrap. The cover image was inspired by the
idea that people tend to conceal their true feelings, for fear of "getting burned", and thus two
businessmen were pictured shaking hands with one man on fire.[150][151][152][153]
Much of Wish You Were Here was premièred on 5 July 1975 at an open-air music festival at
Knebworth[154] before being released in September that year.[155] It reached number one in Britain
and the US,[156][156] along with positive reviews; Robert Christgau wrote: "... the music is not
only simple and attractive, with the synthesiser used mostly for texture and the guitar breaks for
comment, but it actually achieves some of the symphonic dignity (and cross-referencing) that
The Dark Side of the Moon simulated so ponderously."[157]
[edit] Animals
Main article: Animals (Pink Floyd album)
Battersea Power Station featured in the cover image of Pink Floyd's 1977 album, Animals.
Following the Knebworth concert the band bought a three-storey block of church halls, at 35
Britannia Row in Islington, and set about converting the building into a recording studio and
storage facility.[158] The work took up most of 1975 and in 1976 they recorded Animals there,
their eighth studio album.[159]
Animals was another Waters concept, loosely based on George Orwell's political fable Animal
Farm—its lyrics described various classes of society as dogs, pigs, and sheep.[160] Brian
Humphries was again brought in to engineer the album which was completed in December
1976.[159] Apart from its critique of society the album was also in part a response to the punk
rock movement,[161] which grew in popularity as a nihilistic statement against the prevailing
social and political conditions, and also a reaction to the general complacency and nostalgia that
appeared to surround rock music. Pink Floyd were an obvious target for punk musicians, notably
Johnny Rotten who wore a Pink Floyd t-shirt on which the words "I hate" had been written.
Mason later stated that he welcomed the "Punk Rock insurrection" and viewed it as a welcome
return to the underground scene from which Pink Floyd had grown. In 1977 he produced The
Damned's second album at Britannia Row.[162]
Hipgnosis were credited for the packaging of Animals but the final concept was designed by
Waters, who chose an image of the ageing Battersea Power Station. The band commissioned a
30 feet (9.1 m) pig-shaped balloon and photography began on 2 December. Inclement weather
delayed filming and the balloon broke free of its moorings in strong winds, disappearing to
eventually land in Kent where it was recovered by a local farmer, reportedly furious that it had
"apparently scared his cows".[163] Shooting resumed but a decision was made instead to
superimpose the image of the pig onto the photograph of the power station.[163][164]
The division of royalties became a sore topic during production of the album. Royalties were
accorded on a per-song basis and, although Gilmour was largely responsible for "Dogs" which
took up almost the entire first side of the album, he received less than Waters who also
contributed the two-part "Pigs on the Wing", which contains references to Waters' romantic
involvement with Carolyne Anne Christie.[nb 8] Gilmour was also distracted by the birth of his
first child and contributed little else toward the album. Similarly, neither Mason nor Wright
contributed much toward Animals (the first Pink Floyd album not to contain a writing credit for
Wright); Wright had marital problems, and his relationship with Waters was also suffering.[166]
Wright recalled the recording:
Animals was a slog. It wasn't a fun record to make, but this was when Roger really started to
believe that he was the sole writer for the band. He believed that it was only because of him that
the band was still going, and obviously, when he started to develop his ego trips, the person he
would have his conflicts with would be me.[167]
The album was released on 23 January 1977[163] and entered the UK charts at number two and
number three in the US.[168] NME called the album "... one of the most extreme, relentless,
harrowing and downright iconoclastic hunks of music to have been made available this side of
the sun ...",[168] and Melody Maker's Karl Dallas wrote "... [an] uncomfortable taste of reality in a
medium that has become in recent years, increasingly soporific ...".[168]
Soldier Field Chicago, one of the largest venues in which Pink Floyd performed during their In
the Flesh tour in 1977.
The album became the subject material for the band's "In the Flesh" tour, during which early
signs of discord became apparent. This tour was Pink Floyd's first experience with playing in
large stadiums and the size of the venues was an issue.[169] Waters began arriving at each venue
alone, departing immediately after the performance was complete, and Gilmour's wife Ginger did
not get along with Waters' new girlfriend. On one occasion Wright flew back to England
threatening to leave the band. At the Montréal Olympic Stadium a small group of noisy and
excited fans in the front row of the audience irritated Waters so much that he spat at one of them.
Waters was not the only person who felt depressed about playing in such large venues, as that
same night Gilmour refused to perform the band's usual twelve-bar blues encore.[170] The end of
the tour was a low point for Gilmour who felt that the band had by then achieved the success
they sought, and that there was nothing else to look forward to.[171]
[edit] Financial problems
Gilmour and Wright released their début solo albums around this time, David Gilmour and Wet
Dream respectively. While Gilmour's album sold reasonably well Wright's album sold poorly, a
situation only exacerbated by the loss of much of the band's accumulated wealth. In 1976 the
band had become involved with financial advisers Norton Warburg Group (NWG). NWG
became the band's collecting agents and handled all financial planning, for an annual fee of about
£300,000. Between £1.6 million and £3.3 million of the band's money was invested in high-risk
venture capital schemes, primarily to reduce the band's exposure to high UK taxes. It soon
became obvious that the band was still losing money. Not only did NWG invest in failing
businesses, they also left the band liable for tax bills as high as 83 percent of their income. The
band eventually terminated their relationship with NWG and demanded the return of any cash
not yet invested, which at that time amounted to £860,000 although they received only
£740,000.[172][nb 9]
[edit] The Wall
Main articles: The Wall and Pink Floyd—The Wall
In the midst of these problems Waters presented the band with two new ideas, in July 1978. The
first was a 90-minute demo given the provisional title Bricks in the Wall and the other would
later become Waters' first solo album, The Pros and Cons of Hitch Hiking. Although both Mason
and Gilmour were initially cautious the former (inspired by the recent spitting incident) was
chosen to be their next album.[173] Bob Ezrin was brought in as co-producer and he wrote a fortypage script for the new album.[174] The story was based on the central character of Pink—a
character inspired by Waters' childhood experiences, the most notable of which was the death of
his father in World War II. This first 'brick in the wall' led to more problems, Pink would become
so drug-addled and worn down by the music industry that he would transform into a
megalomaniac, a development inspired partly by the decline of Syd Barrett. At the end of the
album the increasingly fascist audience would watch as Pink 'tore down the wall', once again
becoming a normal caring person.[175]
Engineer Brian Humphries, emotionally drained by his five years with the band, was replaced by
James Guthrie for the recording of the album.[176] In March 1979 the band's critical financial
situation demanded that they leave the UK for a year or more and recording was moved to the
Super Bear Studios near Nice.[177] The band were rarely in the studio together and Waters'
relationship with Wright broke down completely. Wright was given a trial period as a producer
but his working methods, and lack of creative input, caused considerable tension. Wright
eventually stopped coming into the studio during the day and worked only at night. Matters came
to a head when Columbia offered the band a better deal, in exchange for a Christmas release of
the album. Waters increased their workload accordingly but Wright, with a failing marriage and
suffering from depression, refused to cut short his family holiday in Rhodes stating, "The rest of
the band's children were young enough to stay with them in France but mine were older and had
to go to school. I was missing my children terribly."[178] In Inside Out (2005), Mason says that
Waters called O'Rourke, who was travelling to the US on the QE2, and told him to have Wright
out of the band by the time Waters arrived in LA to mix the album;[179] however, in Comfortably
Numb (2008) Pink Floyd biographer Mark Blake states that Waters called O'Rourke and asked
him to tell Wright about the new recording arrangements and that Wright's response was
apparently "Tell Roger to fuck off."[180] Wright disagreed with this recollection, stating that the
band had agreed to record only through the spring and early summer and that he had no idea they
were so far behind schedule. Waters was stunned and felt that Wright was not doing enough to
help complete the album.[181] Gilmour was on holiday in Dublin when he learned what was
happening and tried to calm the situation. He later spoke with Wright and gave him his support,
but he reminded him about his lack of input on the album. Waters was insisting that Wright
leave, or else he would refuse to release The Wall. Several days later, worried about their
financial situation and the failing interpersonal relationships within the band, Wright quit.[182]
Rumours persisted that Wright had a cocaine addiction, something he always disputed, and
although his name did not appear anywhere on the finished album he was employed as a paid
musician on the band's subsequent The Wall tour.[183] Production of the album continued and by
August 1979 the running order was largely complete. Wright completed his duties, aided by
session musicians. Toward the end of The Wall sessions, Mason left the final mix to Waters,
Gilmour, Ezrin, and Guthrie, travelling to New York to record his début solo album, Nick
Mason's Fictitious Sports.[184]
Although Pink Floyd rarely released singles, and had not done so since 1968, the album was
promoted with "Another Brick in the Wall (Part II)", which topped the charts in the US and the
UK.[185] A National Endowment for the Arts and RIAA poll named "Another Brick in the Wall
(Part II)" one of the 365 Songs of the Century in 2001.[186] The Wall was released on
30 November 1979 and topped the Billboard charts for fifteen weeks.[187] The Wall ranks No.4 of
all time on the RIAA's list of the Top 100 albums, with 23 million certified units sold in the US
alone,[188] and remains one of the band's best-selling albums.[189] The cover is one of their most
minimalist designs, with a simple white brick wall, and no logo or band name.
The band went on tour with an elaborate stage show. Gerald Scarfe was employed to produce a
series of animations for the subsequent The Wall Tour, including a series of nightmarish visions
of the future such as a dove of peace exploding to reveal an eagle. Large inflatable puppets were
also created for the live shows.[190] Relationships within the band were at an all-time low. Their
four Winnebagos were parked in a circle, with the doors facing away from the centre. Waters
used his own vehicle to arrive at the venue and stayed in separate hotels from the rest of the
band. Wright returned as a paid musician and was the only 'member' of the band to profit from
the venture, which lost about $600,000.[191]
The Wall concept also spawned an eponymous film, the original plan for which was to be a
mixture of live concert footage and animated scenes. The concert footage, however, proved
impractical to film. Alan Parker agreed to direct and took a different approach. The animated
sequences would remain, but scenes would be acted by professional actors with no dialogue.
Waters was screen-tested but quickly discarded and Bob Geldof was asked to take the role of
Pink. Geldof was initially disdainful, condemning The Wall's storyline as "bollocks".[192] He was
eventually won over by the prospect of being involved in a major film and receiving a large
payment for his work. Waters took a six-week holiday during filming and returned to find that
Parker had used his creative license to change parts of the film to his liking. Waters was irate, the
two fought, and Parker threatened to walk out. Gilmour pleaded with Waters to reconsider his
stance, reminding the bassist that he and the other band members were shareholders and directors
and could out-vote him on such decisions. A modified soundtrack was also created for some of
the film's songs. Pink Floyd—The Wall was screened at the Cannes Film Festival in May 1982,
released in the UK in July 1982, and released internationally through the rest of 1982.[193]
[edit] Waters-led era (1981–1984)
[edit] The Final Cut
Main article: The Final Cut (album)
A new musical project, with the working title Spare Bricks, was originally conceived as the
soundtrack album for Pink Floyd The Wall, but with the onset of the Falklands War Waters
changed direction and began writing new material. Waters saw Margaret Thatcher's response to
the invasion of the Falklands as jingoistic and unnecessary, and he dedicated the new album—
provisionally titled Requiem for a Post-War Dream—to his dead father. Immediately there were
arguments between Waters and Gilmour, who felt that the album should contain all new material,
rather than songs not considered good enough for The Wall. Waters felt that Gilmour had
contributed little to the band's lyrical repertoire.[194] Michael Kamen (a contributor to the
orchestral sections of The Wall) mediated between the two, also performing the role traditionally
occupied by the then absent Wright. James Guthrie was the studio engineer and Mason was aided
by two session drummers. Recording took place in eight studios, including Gilmour's home
studio at Hookend Manor and Waters' home studio at East Sheen. The tension within the band
grew, Waters and Gilmour worked separately (itself not unusual) but Gilmour began to feel the
strain, sometimes barely maintaining his composure. Waters lost his temper and began ranting at
Kamen who, out of boredom during one recording session, had started repeatedly writing "I
Must Not Fuck Sheep"[195] on a notepad in the studio's control room. After a final confrontation
Gilmour's name as producer was removed from the credit list, reflecting what Waters felt was his
lack of song writing contributions.[196] Mason's contributions were minimal, as he busied himself
recording sound effects for an experimental new Holophonic system to be used on the album.
With marital problems of his own, he remained a distant figure.[197] Thorgerson was passed over
for the cover design, Waters choosing to instead design it himself and his brother-in-law, Willie
Christie, was commissioned to take photographs for the album cover.[197] The Final Cut was
released in March 1983, going straight to No.1 in the UK and No.6 in the US. Waters is credited
with writing all the lyrics as well as all the music on the album.[198] Gilmour did not have any
material ready for the album and asked Waters to delay the recording until he could write some
songs, Waters refused.[199] Gilmour later commented, "I'm certainly guilty at times of being
lazy ... but he wasn't right about wanting to put some duff tracks on The Final Cut." According to
Mason, Gilmour's name "disappeared" from the production credits, after power struggles within
the band and creative arguments about the album, though he retained his pay.[200] "Not Now
John" was released as a single, with its chorus of "Fuck all that" bowdlerised to "Stuff all that",
Melody Maker declared it to be "... a milestone in the history of awfulness ...". Rolling Stone
magazine gave the album five stars, with Kurt Loder calling it "a superlative achievement on
several levels ..." and "art rock's crowning masterpiece".[201] Loder viewed the album as
"... essentially a Roger Waters solo album ..."[202]
[edit] "A spent force"
Gilmour performing in Brussels in 1984, on his About Face tour
Gilmour recorded his second solo album About Face in 1984 and used it to express his feelings
about a range of topics; from the murder of John Lennon to his relationship with Waters. He later
stated that he also used the album to distance himself from Pink Floyd. Soon afterwards Waters
began touring his new solo album The Pros and Cons of Hitch Hiking.[203] Richard Wright
formed Zee with Dave Harris and recorded Identity, which went almost unnoticed upon its
release. Wright was also in the midst of a difficult divorce and said later that it was, "... made at a
time in my life when I was lost."[204] Mason released his second solo album Profiles in August
1985, which featured a contribution from Gilmour on "Lie for a Lie".[205]
After Waters declared Pink Floyd "a spent force", he contacted O'Rourke to discuss settling
future royalty payments. O'Rourke felt obliged to inform Mason and Gilmour, as a result Waters
was angered and wanted to dismiss him as the band's manager. Waters then went to the High
Court to prevent the Pink Floyd name from ever being used again.[205] His lawyers discovered
that the partnership had never been formally confirmed and Waters returned to the High Court in
an attempt to gain a veto over further use of the band's name. Gilmour's team responded by
issuing a carefully worded press release affirming that Pink Floyd would continue to exist.
Gilmour later told a Sunday Times reporter that "Roger is a dog in the manger and I'm going to
fight him ...".[206]
Waters wrote to EMI and Columbia, declared his intention to leave the group, and asked them to
release him from his contractual obligations. Gilmour believed that Waters left to hasten the
demise of Pink Floyd. Waters later stated that by not making new albums Pink Floyd would be in
breach of contract—which would mean that royalty payments would be suspended—and that he
was effectively forced from the band as the other members threatened to sue him. With the case
still pending Waters dismissed O'Rourke and employed Peter Rudge to manage his affairs.[205]
He went on to record the soundtrack for When the Wind Blows,[207] as well as his second solo
album, Radio K.A.O.S..[208]
[edit] Gilmour-led era (1986–1995)
[edit] A Momentary Lapse of Reason
Main article: A Momentary Lapse of Reason
Astoria
As Radio K.A.O.S. was released in June 1987,[208] Gilmour was recruiting musicians for what
would become Pink Floyd's first album without Waters—A Momentary Lapse of Reason. Artists
such as Jon Carin and Phil Manzanera worked on the album, joined by Bob Ezrin.[209] Gilmour
was also contacted by Wright's new wife. She had heard that he was working on new material
and asked if Wright could contribute. Gilmour considered the request; there were several legal
obstacles to Wright's re-admittance to the band but, after a meeting in Hampstead, he was
brought back in.[210] Gilmour later stated in an interview with author Karl Dallas that Wright's
presence, "would make us stronger legally and musically" and he was employed as a paid
musician on a weekly wage of $11,000.[211][212] The album was recorded on Gilmour's houseboat,
the Astoria, moored along the River Thames with Andy Jackson (a colleague of Guthrie) brought
in as an engineer. Gilmour experimented with various songwriters, such as Eric Stewart and
Roger McGough, but eventually settled on Anthony Moore as the lyricist.[213] Gilmour would
later admit that the new project was difficult without Waters's presence.[214] Nick Mason was
concerned that he was too out of practice to perform on the album and was replaced on occasion
by session musicians. He instead busied himself with the album's sound effects. In a change from
previous Floyd albums A Momentary Lapse of Reason was recorded onto a 32-channel
Mitsubishi digital recorder using MIDI synchronisation with the aid of an Apple Macintosh
computer.[215][216] Waters on one occasion visited Astoria to see Ezrin, along with Christie who
was by then his wife. As he was still a shareholder and director of Pink Floyd music, he was able
to block any decisions made by his former band mates. Recording moved first to Mayfair Studios
and then to Los Angeles—"It was fantastic because ... the lawyers couldn't call in the middle of
recording unless they were calling in the middle of the night."[217]
"Learning to Fly"
A Momentary Lapse of Reason demonstrates a significant change in style over The Final
Cut
The album was released in September 1987. Storm Thorgerson, whose creative input was absent
from The Wall and The Final Cut, was employed to design the cover.[218] In order to drive home
the message that Waters had left the band, a group photograph was—for the first time since
Meddle—included on the inside of the cover.[nb 10] The album went straight to number three in
the United Kingdom and United States—held from the top spot by Michael Jackson's Bad and
Whitesnake's eponymous album Whitesnake. Although Gilmour initially viewed the album as a
return to the band's best form, Wright would later disagree stating, "Roger's criticisms are fair.
It's not a band album at all."[219] Q Magazine's view was that the album was primarily a Gilmour
solo effort.[220] Waters said, "I think it's very facile, but a quite clever forgery ... The songs are
poor in general; the lyrics I can't quite believe. Gilmour's lyrics are very third-rate."[221]
The associated tour had a rocky start. Waters tried to block a proposed Pink Floyd tour by
contacting every promoter in the US and threatening to sue them if they used the Pink Floyd
name. Gilmour and Mason funded the start-up costs with Mason, separated from his wife, using
his Ferrari 250 GTO as collateral. Some promoters were offended by Waters's threat and, several
months later, tickets went on sale in Toronto and were sold out within hours.[222] Early rehearsals
for the upcoming tour were chaotic, with Mason and Wright completely out of practice; realising
he'd taken on too much work, Gilmour asked Bob Ezrin to take charge. As the new band toured
throughout North America, Waters' Radio K.A.O.S. tour was, on occasion, close by. The bassist
had banned any members of Pink Floyd from attending his concerts,[nb 11] which were generally
in smaller venues than those housing his former band's performances. Waters issued a writ for
copyright fees for the band's use of the flying pig and Pink Floyd responded by attaching a huge
set of male genitalia to its underside to distinguish it from his design.[224]
By November 1987 Waters appeared to admit defeat and on 23 December a legal settlement was
finally reached. Mason and Gilmour were allowed use of the Pink Floyd name in perpetuity and
Waters would be granted, amongst other things, The Wall. The bickering continued however,
with Waters issuing the occasional slight against his former friends and Gilmour and Mason
responding by making light of Waters's claims that they would fail without him.[225] The Sun
printed a story about Waters, whom it claimed had paid an artist to create 150 toilet rolls with
Gilmour's face on every sheet; Waters denied the story, but joked that he thought it was a good
idea.[226]
[edit] The Division Bell
Main article: The Division Bell
For several years the three members of Pink Floyd busied themselves with personal pursuits,
such as filming and competing in the Carrera Panamericana (where Gilmour and O'Rourke
crashed) and later recording a soundtrack for the film.[227] Gilmour divorced Ginger and Mason
married actress Annette Lynton.[228] In January 1993 the band began working on a new album.
They returned to a then remodelled Britannia Row Studios, where for several days Gilmour,
Mason, and Wright worked collaboratively, ad-libbing new material. After about two weeks the
band had enough ideas to start creating new songs.[nb 12] Bob Ezrin returned to work on the album
and production moved to Astoria, where from February to May 1993 the band worked on about
twenty-five ideas.[230] Contractually, Wright was still not a full member of the band: "It came
very close to a point where I wasn't going to do the album",[231] a situation which clearly upset
the keyboardist; however, he was given his first songwriting credit on a Pink Floyd album since
1975's Wish You Were Here. Another songwriter credited on the album was Gilmour's new
girlfriend, Polly Samson. She helped write "High Hopes" with Gilmour—along with several
other tracks—a situation which, though initially tense, Ezrin said, "pulled the whole album
together".[232] She also helped Gilmour who had developed a cocaine habit following his
divorce.[233] Michael Kamen was brought in to work on the album's various string
arrangements[230] and Dick Parry and Chris Thomas also returned.[234] Keen to avoid competing
against other album releases (as had happened with A Momentary Lapse) the band set a deadline
of April 1994, at which point they would begin touring again. The album title was chosen by
writer Douglas Adams and Storm Thorgerson once again provided the cover artwork.[235]
Thorgerson also provided six new pieces of film for the upcoming tour.[236]
"Wearing the Inside Out"
"Wearing the Inside Out" was Richard Wright's first vocal contribution to a Pink Floyd
album since 1973's The Dark Side of the Moon
The band spent three weeks rehearsing in a hangar at Norton Air Force Base in San Bernardino,
California,[237] before opening on 29 March 1994 in Miami with an almost identical crew to that
used for their Momentary Lapse of Reason tour. They played a mixture of Pink Floyd favourites,
but later changed their setlist to include The Dark Side of the Moon in its entirety.[238] The band
also renewed their acquaintance with Peter Wynne Willson.[239] Waters declined the band's
invitation to join them as the tour reached Europe, later expressing his annoyance that some Pink
Floyd songs were again being performed in large venues.[240] A 1,200 capacity stand collapsed at
Earls Court during the European leg of the tour, but with no serious injuries, and the performance
was rescheduled.[240]
The tour ended on 29 October and was the group's final tour. A live album Pulse and a concert
video, also called Pulse, were released in 1995.[241] This would also be the last appearance of the
band before the one-off reunion in 2005 during Live 8 and their performances of "Fat Old Sun"
and "The Great Gig in the Sky" at the funeral of their manager Steve O'Rourke.[242][240]
[edit] Live 8 and beyond (2005–present)
See also: Live 8
Roger Waters (seen on the right) rejoined his former bandmates at Live 8
David Gilmour at Live 8, 2005
On Saturday 2 July 2005 the classic line-up of Pink Floyd performed together on stage for the
first time in over 24 years at the Live 8 concert.[243]
The reunion had been arranged by Live 8 organiser Bob Geldof who had called Mason earlier in
the year to discuss the band reuniting for the event. Geldof asked Gilmour, who turned down the
offer, and then asked Mason to intercede on his behalf. Mason declined, but contacted Waters
who was immediately enthusiastic. Waters then called Geldof to discuss the event, which was at
that time only a month away. About two weeks later Waters called Gilmour, their first
conversation for about two years, and the next day the latter agreed. Wright was contacted and
immediately agreed. Statements were issued to the press which stressed the unimportance of the
band's problems, compared to the context of the Live 8 event. The set-list was planned at the
Connaught Hotel in London, followed by three days of rehearsals at Black Island Studios. The
sessions were troublesome, with minor disagreements over the style and pace of the songs they
were practising. Waters wanted to use the occasion to expand the concepts he had designed,
whereas Gilmour wanted to perform the songs in exactly the way the audience would expect.
The final set-list and running order was decided on the eve of the concert.[244] Gilmour and
Waters shared lead vocals. At the start of their performance, during "Wish You Were Here",
Waters told the audience: "It's actually quite emotional, standing up here with these three guys
after all these years, standing to be counted with the rest of you. Anyway, we're doing this for
everyone who's not here, and particularly of course for Syd." At the end of their performance
Gilmour thanked the audience and started to walk off the stage but Waters called him back and
the band shared a group hug. Images of that hug were a favourite amongst Sunday newspapers
after Live 8.[245][246] Two years after their one-off reunion Waters remarked, "I don't think any of
us came out of the years from 1985 with any credit ... It was a bad, negative time. And I regret
my part in that negativity."[247] In the week following their performance there was a revival of
interest in Pink Floyd. According to HMV, in the week following sales of Echoes: The Best of
Pink Floyd rose by 1,343 per cent, while Amazon.com reported a significant increase in sales of
The Wall. Gilmour subsequently declared that he would donate his share of profits from this
sales boom to charity and urged other artists and record companies profiting from Live 8 to do
the same.[248]
After the show Gilmour confirmed that he and Waters were on "pretty amicable terms".[249] The
band turned down a £136 million (then about $250 million) deal for a final tour. Waters did not
rule out further performances, but only for a special occasion.[250][251][252] In a 2006 interview
with La Repubblica Gilmour stated that he wished to focus on solo projects and his family, and
that his appearance at Live 8 was to help reconcile his differences with Waters.[253] In a 2006
interview Mason stated that Pink Floyd would be willing to perform for a concert that would
support peace between Israel and Palestine.[254] Speaking of Pink Floyd's future Gilmour stated
in 2006 "who knows".[255] David Gilmour released his third solo record, On an Island, on
6 March 2006—his 60th birthday. He began a tour of small concert venues in Europe, Canada
and the US, with contributions from Wright and other musicians from the post-Waters Pink
Floyd tours. Mason joined Gilmour and Wright for the final night of the tour and played on
selected dates on Waters' 2006 Europe and U.S. tour "The Dark Side of the Moon Live".
Gilmour, Wright, and Mason's encore performances of "Wish You Were Here" and
"Comfortably Numb" marked the first performance by Pink Floyd since Live 8.[256]
Syd Barrett died on 7 July 2006 at his home in Cambridgeshire aged 60.[257] He was interred at
Cambridge Crematorium on 18 July 2006. No Pink Floyd members attended. After Barrett's
death Wright said, "The band are very naturally upset and sad to hear of Syd Barrett's death. Syd
was the guiding light of the early band line-up and leaves a legacy which continues to
inspire."[257] Although Barrett had faded into obscurity over the previous 35 years, he was lauded
in the national press for his contributions to music.[258] He left over £1.25M in his will, to be
divided among his immediate family, and some of his possessions and artwork were
auctioned.[259]
In September 2005 Waters released Ça Ira, an opera in three acts to a French libretto, based on
the historical subject of the French Revolution. Reviews were complimentary;[260] Rolling Stone
wrote, "the opera does reflect some of the man's long-term obsessions with war and peace, love
and loss".[261] 2007 saw the 40th anniversary of Pink Floyd's signing to EMI and the 40th
anniversary of the release of their début album The Piper at the Gates of Dawn. 2007 saw the
release of Oh, by the Way, a limited edition box set containing all of their studio albums.[262]
On 10 May 2007 Waters and Pink Floyd performed separately at the Syd Barrett tribute concert
at the Barbican Centre in London. The band performed some of Barrett's hits, such as "Bike" and
"Arnold Layne", at the event which was organised by Joe Boyd and Nick Laird-Clowes.[263] In a
January 2007 interview Waters suggested he had become more open to a Pink Floyd reunion: "I
would have no problem if the rest of them wanted to get together. It wouldn’t even have to be to
save the world. It could be just because it would be fun. And people would love it."[264] Later that
year Gilmour stated: "I can’t see why I would want to be going back to that old thing. It’s very
retrogressive. I want to look forward, and looking back isn’t my joy."[265] In a May 2008
interview for BBC 6Music, David Gilmour hinted that he would be in favour of another one-off
show, but ruled out a full tour.[266] Speaking to Associated Press to promote the release of his
new live album, David Gilmour stated that a reunion would not happen. Gilmour said: "The
rehearsals were less enjoyable. The rehearsals convinced me it wasn't something I wanted to be
doing a lot of ... There have been all sorts of farewell moments in people's lives and careers
which they have then rescinded, but I think I can fairly categorically say that there won't be a
tour or an album again that I take part in. It isn't to do with animosity or anything like that. It's
just that I've done that. I've been there, I've done it."[267]
Richard Wright died of cancer on 15 September 2008 aged 65.[268] He was praised by his
surviving band mates for his influence on the overall sound of Pink Floyd.[269]
On 10 July 2010 Roger Waters and David Gilmour performed together at a charity event for the
Hoping Foundation. The event took place at Kiddington Hall in Oxfordshire, England. The pair
played to an audience of approximately 200. The event raised money for Palestinian children in
order to give them a better life. Gilmour played this event in 2009 when he performed alongside
Kate Moss.[270] In return for Waters' appearance at the event, Gilmour agreed to perform
"Comfortably Numb" at one of Waters' upcoming performances of The Wall.[271]
On 4 January 2011 Pink Floyd signed a five year record deal with EMI, ending the legal dispute
regarding how their material is distributed in the era of individual track downloads. They
defended their vision to keep their albums as a cohesive unit and not just individual tracks.[272]
On 12 May 2011 at the O2 Arena in London, David Gilmour made good on his promise to play
"Comfortably Numb" at one of Roger Waters' performances of The Wall. Gilmour sang the first
and second chorus, accidentally juxtaposing the last few lines in the second, and played the two
guitar solos. After the wall fell down near the end of the show Waters said to the crowd, "We've
done it today. So please welcome David Gilmour! By a strange and happy extraordinary
coincidence, there is another remnant of our old band here tonight. Please welcome, Mr. Nick
Mason!" Gilmour and Mason, with respectively a mandolin and a tambourine, joined Waters and
the rest of his band for "Outside The Wall", effectively representing a full reunion of all living
Pink Floyd members.[273] It was the first time since Live 8 that the three members shared the
same stage and the first time that the line-up from the album The Final Cut appeared in
concert.[274]
On 26 September 2011, Pink Floyd and EMI launched an exhaustive re-release campaign under
the title Why Pink Floyd...? which reissues the band's back catalogue in newly remastered
versions, including special "Immersion" multi-disc multi-format editions. All albums are being
remastered by James Guthrie, the co-producer of The Wall.[275]
[edit] Legacy
[edit] Influence and awards
Pink Floyd's classic line-up. Clockwise (from top left): Roger Waters, David Gilmour, Richard
Wright and Nick Mason
Pink Floyd are one of the most commercially successful and influential rock music groups of all
time.[276] They have sold over 200 million albums worldwide,[277][278] including 74.5 million
certified units in the United States[279] of which 35.8 million albums have been sold since
1991.[280]
Pink Floyd ranked number 51 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of "The 100 Greatest Artists of
All Time",[281] with David Gilmour ranking 82nd in the greatest guitarists list.[282]
The Sunday Times Rich List Music Millionaires 2011 ranked Waters at No.22 with an estimated
wealth of £105m, Gilmour at No.27 with £85m and Mason at No.41 with £50m.[283]
Numerous artists have been influenced by Pink Floyd's work: David Bowie has called Syd
Barrett a major inspiration;[284] A teenage The Edge (of U2 fame) bought his first delay pedal
after hearing the opening to Animals;[285] and the Pet Shop Boys paid homage to The Wall during
a performance in Boston;[286] Marillion guitarist Steve Rothery has cited Wish You Were Here as
a major inspiration;[287] and many other bands, such as the Foo Fighters, Dream Theater,
Porcupine Tree, The Mars Volta, Tool, Queensryche, Scissor Sisters, Rush, Radiohead, Gorillaz,
Mudvayne, Nine Inch Nails, Primus and the Smashing Pumpkins, some of whom have recorded
Pink Floyd covers, have been influenced by them.
Pink Floyd have been nominated for and won multiple awards.[288] Technical awards include a
"Best Engineered Non-Classical Album" Grammy in 1980 for The Wall[289] and BAFTAs award
for 'Best Original Song' (awarded to Waters) and 'Best Sound' (awarded to James Guthrie, Eddy
Joseph, Clive Winter, Graham Hartstone and Nicholas Le Messurier) in 1982 for the The Wall
film.[290] A Grammy came to them in 1995 for "Rock Instrumental Performance" on
"Marooned".[291] In 2008 Pink Floyd were awarded the Polar Music Prize for their contribution
to contemporary music; Waters and Mason accepted the prize from King Carl XVI Gustaf of
Sweden.[292] They were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame on 17 January 1996,[293]
the UK Music Hall of Fame on 16 November 2005[294] and the Hit Parade Hall of Fame in
2010.[295]
A new genus of spider, Pinkfloydia, was named by DIMITROV, D. & HORMIGA, G. (2011): An
extraordinary new genus of spiders from Western Australia with an expanded hypothesis on the
phylogeny of Tetragnathidae (Araneae). Zoological journal of the Linnean Society, 161(4): 735–
768. doi:10.1111/j.1096-3642.2010.00662.x
[edit] Live performances
Main article: Pink Floyd live performances
Pink Floyd are regarded as pioneers in the live music experience and were renowned for their
lavish stage shows, in which the performers themselves were almost secondary. Pink Floyd also
set high standards in sound quality, making use of innovative sound effects and quadraphonic
speaker systems.[296] From their earliest days they were well known for their use of visual effects,
which accompanied the psychedelic rock pieces performed at venues such as the UFO Club in
London.[35] The quality of their live performances, even when pre-recorded, was considered by
the band to be extremely important; they boycotted the press release of The Dark Side of the
Moon as they felt presenting the album through a poor-quality PA system was not good
enough.[128][297] The album had been composed and refined mostly while the band toured the UK,
Japan, North America, and Europe.[298] An inflatable floating pig named "Algie" became the
inspiration for a number of pig themes used throughout the "In the Flesh Tour",[299] which began
in Dortmund and continued through Europe to the UK, and then the US.
Although Pink Floyd were experienced live performers the behaviour of the audience on their
"In the Flesh" tour, and the sizes of the venues they played, were a powerful influence on their
concept album The Wall. The subsequent "The Wall Tour" featured a 40 feet (12 m) high wall,
built from cardboard bricks, constructed between the band and the audience. Animations were
projected onto the wall, and gaps allowed the audience to view various scenes in the story.
Several characters from the story were realised as giant inflatables.[300] One of the more notable
elements of the tour was the performance of "Comfortably Numb". While Waters sang his
opening verse, Gilmour waited for his cue on top of the wall in darkness. When it came, bright
blue and white lights would suddenly illuminate him. Gilmour stood on a flight case on castors, a
dangerous set-up supported from behind by a technician, both supported by a tall hydraulic
platform.[301]
In 1987 Pink Floyd embarked on their A Momentary Lapse of Reason Tour. Starting in Ottawa
on 9 September they spent about two years touring the US, Japan, Europe, and Central Asia. In
Venice, Italy, the band played to an audience of 200,000 fans at the Piazza San Marco. The
resulting storm of protest over the city's lack of toilet provision, first aid, and accommodation
resulted in the resignation of Mayor Antonio Casellati and his government. At the end of the tour
Pink Floyd released Delicate Sound of Thunder,[302] and in 1989 released the Delicate Sound of
Thunder concert video.[303]
During the band's "Division Bell" tour, an unidentified person using the name Publius posted a
message on an internet newsgroup, inviting fans to solve a riddle supposedly concealed in the
new album. The veracity of the user was demonstrated when white lights in front of the stage at
the Pink Floyd concert in East Rutherford spelled out the words Enigma Publius. During a
televised concert at Earls Court in October 1994 the word enigma was projected in large letters
on to the backdrop of the stage. Mason later acknowledged that the Publius Enigma did exist,
and that it had been instigated by the record company rather than the band. As of 2011 the puzzle
remains unsolved.[238]
[edit] Discography
Pink Floyd portal
Main article: Pink Floyd discography
Studio albums














The Piper at the Gates of Dawn (1967)
A Saucerful of Secrets (1968)
Soundtrack from the Film More (1969)
Ummagumma (1969)
Atom Heart Mother (1970)
Meddle (1971)
Obscured by Clouds (1972)
The Dark Side of the Moon (1973)
Wish You Were Here (1975)
Animals (1977)
The Wall (1979)
The Final Cut (1983)
A Momentary Lapse of Reason (1987)
The Division Bell (1994)
[edit] Band members
Former members


Syd Barrett – lead vocals, lead guitar (1965–1968)
David Gilmour – lead vocals, lead guitar, bass guitar, keyboards, special effects (December
1967–1996, 2005)



Bob Klose – guitars (1965)
Nick Mason – drums, percussion, programming (1965–1996, 2005)
Roger Waters – lead vocals, bass guitar, guitars, percussion, programming (1965–1985,
2005)

Richard Wright – keyboards, vocals, organ, piano, synthesisers, mellotron (1965–1979,
1987–1996, 2005)
[This page was last modified on 13 October 2011 at 04:45.
Black Sabbath
Black Sabbath on stage in Stuttgart on 16 December
1999, L-R: Geezer Butler, Ozzy Osbourne, Tony
Iommi, Bill Ward
Background information
Also known
as
The Polka Tulk Blues Band, Earth
Origin
Aston, Birmingham, England
Genres
Heavy metal
Years active
1968–2006
Labels
Vertigo, Warner Bros., I.R.S.
Associated
acts
Mythology, Jethro Tull, Heaven &
Hell, Dio, Ozzy Osbourne, Deep
Purple, Rainbow, GZR
Website
blacksabbath.com
Past members
See: List of Black Sabbath band members
Black Sabbath were an English rock band, formed in Aston, Birmingham in 1968 by Ozzy
Osbourne (lead vocals), Tony Iommi (guitar), Geezer Butler (bass guitar), and Bill Ward
(drums). The band has since experienced multiple line-up changes, with Tony Iommi the only
constant presence in the band through the years. A total of 22 musicians have at one time been
members of Black Sabbath. Originally formed as a heavy blues rock band named Earth, the band
began incorporating occult- and horror-inspired lyrics with tuned-down guitars, changing their
name to Black Sabbath and achieving multiple platinum records in the 1970s. Despite an
association with occult and horror themes, Black Sabbath also composed songs dealing with
social instability, political corruption, the dangers of drug abuse and the often apocalyptic
prophesies of the horrors of war.
Black Sabbath are cited, along with Led Zeppelin and Deep Purple, as pioneers of heavy
metal.[1][2] The band helped define the genre with releases such as quadruple-platinum Paranoid,
released in 1970.[3] They were ranked by MTV as the "Greatest Metal Band" of all time,[4] and
placed second in VH1's "100 Greatest Artists of Hard Rock" list, behind Led Zeppelin.[5] Rolling
Stone has posited the band as 'the heavy-metal kings of the '70s'.[6] They have sold over 15
million records in the United States alone[7] and more than 100 million records worldwide.[8]
Black Sabbath were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2006, and were included
among Rolling Stone's list of the 100 Greatest Artists of All Time.[9]
Vocalist Ozzy Osbourne's heavy alcohol and cocaine usage led to his being fired from the band
in April 1979, after which he began a very successful solo career, selling more than 32 million
albums. He was replaced by former Rainbow vocalist Ronnie James Dio. After a few albums
with Dio's vocals and songwriting collaborations, Black Sabbath endured a revolving line-up in
the 1980s and 1990s that included vocalists Ian Gillan, Glenn Hughes, Ray Gillen and Tony
Martin. In 1992, Iommi and Butler rejoined Dio and drummer Vinny Appice to record
Dehumanizer. The original line-up reunited with Osbourne in 1997 and released a live album,
Reunion. The 1979–1982 and 1991–1992 line-up featuring Iommi, Butler, Dio, and Appice
reformed in 2006 under the moniker Heaven & Hell until Dio's death on 16 May 2010.

[edit] History
[edit] Formation and early days (1968–1969)
Following the break-up of their previous band in 1968, guitarist Tony Iommi and drummer Bill
Ward sought to form a heavy blues rock band in Aston, Birmingham. The two enlisted bassist
Geezer Butler and vocalist Ozzy Osbourne, who had played together in a band called Rare
Breed, Osbourne having placed an advertisement in a local music shop: "Ozzy Zig Needs Gig –
has own PA".[10] The new group was initially named The Polka Tulk Blues Band (after a cheap
brand of talcum powder Osbourne saw in his mother's bathroom)[11] and also featured slide
guitarist Jimmy Phillips and saxophonist Alan "Aker" Clarke. After shortening the name to Polka
Tulk, the band changed their name to Earth (which Osbourne hated)[12] and continued as a fourpiece without Phillips and Clarke.[13][14] While the band was performing under the Earth title,
they recorded several demos written by Norman Haines such as "The Rebel", "Song for Jim",
and "When I Came Down".[15]
In December 1968, Iommi abruptly left Earth to join Jethro Tull.[16] Although his stint with the
band would be short-lived, Iommi made an appearance with Jethro Tull on the The Rolling
Stones Rock and Roll Circus TV show. Unsatisfied with the direction of Jethro Tull, Iommi
returned to Earth in January 1969. "It just wasn't right, so I left", Iommi said. "At first I thought
Tull were great, but I didn't much go for having a leader in the band, which was Ian Anderson's
way. When I came back from Tull, I came back with a new attitude altogether. They taught me
that to get on, you got to work for it."[17]
While playing shows in England in 1969, the band discovered they were being mistaken for
another English group named Earth, and decided to change their name again. A movie theatre
across the street from the band's rehearsal room was showing the 1963 Boris Karloff horror film
Black Sabbath directed by Mario Bava. While watching people line up to see the film, Butler
noted that it was "strange that people spend so much money to see scary movies."[18] Following
that, Osbourne and Butler wrote the lyrics for a song called "Black Sabbath", which was inspired
by the work of occult writer Dennis Wheatley,[19][20] along with a vision that Butler had of a
black silhouetted figure standing at the foot of his bed.[21] Making use of the musical tritone, also
known as "The Devil's Interval",[22] the song's ominous sound and dark lyrics pushed the band in
a darker direction,[23][24] a stark contrast to the popular music of the late 1960s, which was
dominated by flower power, folk music, and hippie culture. Inspired by the new sound, the band
changed their name to Black Sabbath in August 1969,[25] and made the decision to focus on
writing similar material, in an attempt to create the musical equivalent of horror films.
[edit] Black Sabbath and Paranoid (1970–1971)
Black Sabbath were signed to Philips Records in November 1969,[26] and released their first
single, "Evil Woman" through Philips subsidiary Fontana Records in January 1970. Later
releases were handled by Philips' newly formed progressive rock label, Vertigo Records.
Although the single failed to chart, the band were afforded two days of studio time in November
to record their debut album with producer Rodger Bain. Iommi recalls recording live: "We
thought 'We have two days to do it and one of the days is mixing.' So we played live. Ozzy was
singing at the same time, we just put him in a separate booth and off we went. We never had a
second run of most of the stuff."[27]
Black Sabbath was released on Friday the 13th, February 1970. The album reached number 8 in
the UK Albums Chart, and following its US and Canadian release in May 1970 by Warner Bros.
Records, the album reached number 23 on the Billboard 200, where it remained for over a
year.[28][29] While the album was a commercial success, it was widely panned by critics, with
Lester Bangs dismissing the album in a Rolling Stone review as "discordant jams with bass and
guitar reeling like velocitised speedfreaks all over each other's musical perimeters, yet never
quite finding synch".[30] It sold in substantial numbers despite being panned, giving the band
their first mainstream exposure.[31] It has since been certified platinum in both US by the
Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) and in the UK by British Phonographic
Industry (BPI).[32][33]
To capitalise on their chart success in the US, the band returned to the studio in June 1970, just
four months after Black Sabbath was released. The new album was initially set to be named War
Pigs after the song "War Pigs", which was critical of the Vietnam War; however, Warner
changed the title of the album to Paranoid. The album's lead-off single "Paranoid" was written in
the studio at the last minute. As Bill Ward explains: "We didn't have enough songs for the album,
and Tony just played the [Paranoid] guitar lick and that was it. It took twenty, twenty-five
minutes from top to bottom."[34] The single was released in September 1970 and reached number
four on the UK charts, remaining Black Sabbath's only top ten hit.[29] The album followed in the
UK in October 1970, where, pushed by the success of the "Paranoid" single, it made number one
in the charts.
The US release was held until January 1971, as the Black Sabbath album was still on the charts
at the time of Paranoid's UK release. The album reached No. 12 in the US in March 1971,[35]
and would go on to sell four million copies in the US,[36] with virtually no radio airplay.[29] Like
Black Sabbath, the album was slated by rock critics of the era, but modern-day reviewers such as
AllMusic's Steve Huey cite Paranoid as "one of the greatest and most influential heavy metal
albums of all time", which "defined the sound and style of heavy metal more than any other
record in rock history".[3] In 2003, the album was ranked at No. 130 on Rolling Stone magazine's
list of The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time. Paranoid's chart success allowed the band to tour
the US for the first time in December 1970, which spawned the release of the album's second
single "Iron Man". Although the single failed to reach the top 40, "Iron Man" remains one of
Black Sabbath's most popular songs, as well as the band's highest charting US single until 1998's
"Psycho Man".[28]
[edit] Master of Reality and Volume 4 (1971–1973)
In February 1971, Black Sabbath returned to the studio to begin work on their third album.
Following the chart success of Paranoid, the band were afforded more studio time, along with a
"briefcase full of cash" to buy drugs.[37] "We were getting into coke, big time", Ward explained.
"Uppers, downers, Quaaludes, whatever you like. It got to the stage where you come up with
ideas and forget them, because you were just so out of it."[38]
Production completed in April 1971, and in July the band released Master of Reality, just six
months after the US release of Paranoid. The album reached the top ten in both the US and UK,
and was certified gold in less than two months,[39] eventually receiving platinum certification in
the 1980s[39] and Double Platinum in the early 21st century.[39] Master of Reality contained Black
Sabbath's first acoustic songs, alongside fan favourites such as "Children of the Grave" and
"Sweet Leaf".[40] Critical response of the era was generally unfavourable, with Lester Bangs
delivering an ambivalent review of Master of Reality in Rolling Stone, describing the closing
song "Children of the Grave" as "naïve, simplistic, repetitive, absolute doggerel – but in the
tradition [of rock'n'roll] .... The only criterion is excitement, and Black Sabbath's got it",[41] yet
the very same magazine would in 2003 place the album at number 298 on their 500 Greatest
Albums of All Time list.
Following the Master of Reality world tour in 1972, Black Sabbath took its first break in three
years. As Bill Ward explained: "The band started to become very fatigued and very tired. We'd
been on the road non-stop, year in and year out, constantly touring and recording. I think Master
of Reality was kind of like the end of an era, the first three albums, and we decided to take our
time with the next album."[42]
In June 1972, the band reconvened in Los Angeles to begin work on their next album at the
Record Plant. The recording process was plagued with problems, many as a result of substance
abuse issues. While struggling to record the song "Cornucopia" after "sitting in the middle of the
room, just doing drugs",[43] Bill Ward was nearly fired from the band. "I hated the song, there
were some patterns that were just... horrible" Ward said. "I nailed it in the end, but the reaction I
got was the cold shoulder from everybody. It was like 'Well, just go home, you're not being of
any use right now.' I felt like I'd blown it, I was about to get fired".[44] The album was originally
titled "Snowblind" after the song of the same name, which deals with cocaine abuse. The record
company changed the title at the last minute to Black Sabbath Vol. 4, with Ward stating "There
was no Volume 1, 2 or 3, so it's a pretty stupid title really".[45]
Black Sabbath's Volume 4 was released in September 1972, and while critics were dismissive of
the album upon release, it achieved gold status in less than a month,[46] and was the band's fourth
consecutive release to sell a million copies in the US.[28][46] With more time in the studio, Volume
4 saw the band starting to experiment with new textures, such as strings, piano, orchestration and
multi-part songs.[47] The song "Tomorrow's Dream" was released as a single—the band's first
since Paranoid—but failed to chart.[48] Following an extensive tour of the US, the band travelled
to Australia and New Zealand for the first time in 1973, and later mainland Europe.
[edit] Sabbath Bloody Sabbath and Sabotage (1973–1976)
Following the Volume 4 world tour, Black Sabbath returned to Los Angeles to begin work on
their next release. Pleased with the Volume 4 album, the band sought to recreate the recording
atmosphere, and returned to the Record Plant studio in Los Angeles. With new musical
innovations of the era, the band were surprised to find that the room they had used previously at
the Record Plant was replaced by a "giant synthesiser". The band rented a house in Bel Air and
began writing in the summer of 1973, but in part because of substance issues and fatigue, they
were unable to complete any songs. "Ideas weren't coming out the way they were on Volume 4
and we really got discontent" Iommi said. "Everybody was sitting there waiting for me to come
up with something. I just couldn't think of anything. And if I didn't come up with anything,
nobody would do anything."[49]
Tony Iommi and Ozzy Osbourne on stage at Kooyong Stadium in Melbourne, Australia on 13
January 1973.
After a month in Los Angeles with no results, the band opted to return to England, where they
rented Clearwell Castle in The Forest of Dean. "We rehearsed in the dungeons and it was really
creepy but it had some atmosphere, it conjured up things, and stuff started coming out again."[50]
While working in the dungeon, Iommi stumbled onto the main riff of "Sabbath Bloody Sabbath,"
which set the tone for the new material. Recorded at Morgan Studios in London by Mike Butcher
and building off the stylistic changes introduced on Volume 4, new songs incorporated
synthesisers, strings, and complex arrangements. Yes keyboardist Rick Wakeman was brought in
as a session player, appearing on "Sabbra Cadabra."[51]
In November 1973, Black Sabbath released the critically acclaimed Sabbath Bloody Sabbath. For
the first time in their career, the band began to receive favourable reviews in the mainstream
press, with Gordon Fletcher of Rolling Stone calling the album "an extraordinarily gripping
affair," and "nothing less than a complete success."[52] Later reviewers such as AllMusic's
Eduardo Rivadavia cite the album as a "masterpiece, essential to any heavy metal collection,"
while also displaying "a newfound sense of finesse and maturity."[53] The album marked the
band's fifth consecutive platinum selling album in the US,[54] reaching number four on the UK
charts, and number eleven in the US.
The band began a world tour in January 1974, which culminated at the California Jam festival in
Ontario, California on 6 April 1974. Attracting over 200,000 fans, Black Sabbath appeared
alongside 1970s rock and pop giants Deep Purple, Eagles, Emerson, Lake & Palmer, Rare Earth,
Seals & Crofts, Black Oak Arkansas, and Earth, Wind & Fire. Portions of the show were telecast
on ABC Television in the US, exposing the band to a wider American audience. In the same
year, the band shifted management, signing with notorious English manager Don Arden. The
move caused a contractual dispute with Black Sabbath's former management, and while on stage
in the US, Osbourne was handed a subpoena that led to two years of litigation.[49]
Black Sabbath began work on their sixth album in February 1975, again in England at Morgan
Studios in Willesden, this time with a decisive vision to differ the sound from Sabbath, Bloody
Sabbath. "We could've continued and gone on and on, getting more technical, using orchestras
and everything else which we didn't particularly want to. We took a look at ourselves, and we
wanted to do a rock album – Sabbath, Bloody Sabbath wasn't a rock album, really."[55] Produced
by Black Sabbath and Mike Butcher, Sabotage was released in July 1975. As with its precursor,
the album initially saw favourable reviews, with Rolling Stone stating "Sabotage is not only
Black Sabbath's best record since Paranoid, it might be their best ever",[56] although later
reviewers such as Allmusic noted that "the magical chemistry that made such albums as
Paranoid and Volume 4 so special was beginning to disintegrate".[57]
Sabotage reached the top 20 in both the US and the UK, but was the band's first release not to
achieve Platinum status in the US, only achieving Gold certification.[58] Although the album's
only single "Am I Going Insane (Radio)" failed to chart, Sabotage features fan favourites such as
"Hole in the Sky", and "Symptom of the Universe".[57] Black Sabbath toured in support of
Sabotage with openers Kiss, but were forced to cut the tour short in November 1975, following a
motorcycle accident in which Osbourne ruptured a muscle in his back. In December 1975, the
band's record companies released a Greatest hits album without input from the band, titled We
Sold Our Soul for Rock 'n' Roll. The album charted throughout 1976, eventually selling two
million copies in the US.[59]
[edit] Technical Ecstasy and Never Say Die! (1976–1979)
Black Sabbath began work for their next album at Criteria Studios in Miami, Florida, in June
1976. To expand their sound, the band added keyboard player Gerry Woodruffe, who also had
appeared to a less extent on Sabotage. Technical Ecstasy, released on 25 September 1976, was
met with mixed reviews. For the first time the reviews did not become more favourable as time
passed, two decades after its release AllMusic gave the album two stars, and noted that the band
was "unravelling at an alarming rate".[60] The album featured less of the doomy, ominous sound
of previous efforts, and incorporated more synthesisers and uptempo rock songs. Technical
Ecstasy failed to reach the top 50 in the US, and was the band's second consecutive release not to
achieve platinum status, although it was later certified gold in 1997.[61] The album included
"Dirty Women", which remains a live staple, as well as Bill Ward's first lead vocal on the song
"It's Alright".[60] Touring in support of Technical Ecstasy began in November 1976, with openers
Boston and Ted Nugent in the US, and completed in Europe with AC/DC in April 1977.[25]
In November 1977, while in rehearsal for their next album, and just days before the band was set
to enter the studio, Ozzy Osbourne quit the band. "The last Sabbath albums were just very
depressing for me", Osbourne said. "I was doing it for the sake of what we could get out of the
record company, just to get fat on beer and put a record out."[62] Former Fleetwood Mac and
Savoy Brown vocalist Dave Walker was brought into rehearsals in October 1977, and the band
began working on new songs.[28] Black Sabbath made their first and only appearance with
Walker on vocals, playing an early version of the song "Junior's Eyes" on the BBC Television
program "Look! Hear!".[25]
Tony Iommi in 2005.
Osbourne initially set out to form a solo project, which featured ex-Dirty tricks members John
Frazer-Binnie, Terry Horbury, and Andy Bierne. As the new band were in rehearsals in January
1978, Osbourne had a change of heart and rejoined Black Sabbath. "Three days before we were
due to go into the studio, Ozzy wanted to come back to the band," Iommi explained. "He
wouldn't sing any of the stuff we'd written with the other guy, so it made it very difficult. We
went into the studio with basically no songs. We'd write in the morning so we could rehearse and
record at night. It was so difficult, like a conveyor belt, because you couldn't get time to reflect
on stuff. 'Is this right? Is this working properly?' It was very difficult for me to come up with the
ideas and putting them together that quick."[62]
The band spent five months at Sounds Interchange Studios in Toronto, Canada, writing and
recording what would become Never Say Die!. "It took quite a long time," Iommi said. "We were
getting really drugged out, doing a lot of dope. We'd go down to the sessions, and have to pack
up because we were too stoned, we'd have to stop. Nobody could get anything right, we were all
over the place, everybody's playing a different thing. We'd go back and sleep it off, and try again
the next day."[62] The album was released in September 1978, reaching number twelve in the UK,
and number 69 in the US. Press response was unfavourable and did not improve over time with
Eduardo Rivadavia of AllMusic stating two decades after its release that the album's "unfocused
songs perfectly reflected the band's tense personnel problems and drug abuse."[63] The album
featured the singles "Never Say Die" and "Hard Road", both of which cracked the top 40 in the
UK, and the band made their second appearance on the Top of the Pops, performing "Never Say
Die". It took nearly 20 years for the album to be certified Gold in the US.[64]
Touring in support of Never Say Die! began in May 1978 with openers Van Halen. Reviewers
called Black Sabbath's performance "tired and uninspired", a stark contrast to the "youthful"
performance of Van Halen, who were touring the world for the first time.[25] The band filmed a
performance at the Hammersmith Odeon in June 1978, which was later released on DVD as
Never Say Die. The final show of the tour, and Osbourne's last appearance with the band (until
later reunions) was in Albuquerque, New Mexico on 11 December.
Following the tour, Black Sabbath returned to Los Angeles and again rented a house in Bel Air,
where they spent nearly a year working on material for the next album. With pressure from the
record label, and frustrations with Osbourne's lack of ideas coming to a head, Tony made the
decision to fire Ozzy Osbourne in 1979. "At that time, Ozzy had come to an end", Iommi said.
"We were all doing a lot of drugs, a lot of coke, a lot of everything, and Ozzy was getting drunk
so much at the time. We were supposed to be rehearsing and nothing was happening. It was like
'Rehearse today? No, we'll do it tomorrow.' It really got so bad that we didn't do anything. It just
fizzled out."[65] Drummer Bill Ward, who was close with Osbourne, was chosen by Tony to
break the news to the singer. "I hope I was professional, I might not have been, actually. When
I'm drunk I am horrible, I am horrid," Ward said. "Alcohol was definitely one of the most
damaging things to Black Sabbath. We were destined to destroy each other. The band were toxic,
very toxic."[66]
[edit] Heaven and Hell and Mob Rules (1979–1982)
Sharon Arden (later Sharon Osbourne), daughter of Black Sabbath manager Don Arden,
suggested former Rainbow vocalist Ronnie James Dio to replace Ozzy Osbourne in 1979. Dio
officially joined in June, and the band began writing their next album. With a notably different
vocal style from Osbourne's, Dio's addition to the band marked a change in Black Sabbath's
sound. "They were totally different altogether", Iommi explains. "Not only voice-wise, but
attitude-wise. Ozzy was a great showman, but when Dio came in, it was a different attitude, a
different voice and a different musical approach, as far as vocals. Dio would sing across the riff,
whereas Ozzy would follow the riff, like in "Iron Man". Ronnie came in and gave us another
angle on writing."[67]
Dio's term in Black Sabbath has also brought the "metal horns" gesture to popularity in heavy
metal subculture. Dio adopted it, originally a superstitious move to ward off the "evil eye", as a
greeting to the audience. Since then, the gesture became widely copied by fans and other
musicians alike.[68][69]
Geezer Butler temporarily left the band in September 1979, and was initially replaced by Geoff
Nicholls of Quartz on bass. The new line-up returned to Criteria Studios in November to begin
recording work, with Butler returning to the band in January 1980, and Nicholls moving to
keyboards. Produced by Martin Birch, Heaven and Hell, was released on 25 April 1980, to
critical acclaim. Over a decade after its release AllMusic said the album was "one of Sabbath's
finest records, the band sounds reborn and re-energised throughout".[70] Heaven and Hell peaked
at number 9 in the UK, and number 28 in the US, the band's highest charting album since
Sabotage. The album eventually sold a million copies in the US,[71] and the band embarked on an
extensive world tour, making their first live appearance with Dio in Germany on 17 April 1980.
Black Sabbath toured the US throughout 1980 with Blue Öyster Cult on the "Black and Blue"
tour, with a show at Nassau Coliseum in Uniondale, New York filmed and released theatrically
in 1981 as Black and Blue.[72] On 26 July 1980, the band played to 75,000 fans at a sold-out
Memorial Coliseum in Los Angeles with Journey, Cheap Trick, and Molly Hatchet.[73] The next
day, the band appeared at the 1980 Day on the Green at Oakland Coliseum. While on tour, Black
Sabbath's former label in England issued a live album culled from a seven-year old performance,
entitled Live at Last without any input from the band. The album reached number five on the
British charts, and saw the re-release of "Paranoid" as a single, which reached the top 20.[28]
Vocalist Ronnie James Dio
On 18 August 1980, after a show in Minneapolis, Minnesota, Bill Ward was fired from Black
Sabbath. "I was sinking very quickly", Ward later said. "I was an unbelievable drunk, I was
drunk twenty-four hours a day. When I went on stage, the stage wasn't so bright. It felt like I was
dying inside. The live show seemed so bare, Ron was out there doing his thing and I just went
'It's gone'. I like Ronnie, but musically, he just wasn't for me."[74] Concerned with Ward's
declining health, Iommi brought in drummer Vinny Appice, without informing Ward. "They
didn't talk to me, they booted me from my chair and I wasn't told about that. I knew they'd have
to bring in a drummer to save the (tour), but I'd been with the band for years and years, since we
were kids. And then Vinny was playing and it was like 'What the fuck?' It hurt a lot."[75]
The band completed the Heaven and Hell world tour in February 1981, and returned to the studio
to begin work on their next album.[76] Black Sabbath's second studio album produced by Martin
Birch and featuring Ronnie James Dio as vocalist, Mob Rules was released in October 1981, to
be well received by fans, but less so by the critics. Rolling Stone reviewer J. D. Considine gave
the album one star, claiming "Mob Rules finds the band as dull-witted and flatulent as ever".[77]
Like most of the band's earlier work, time helped to improve the opinions of the music press, a
decade after its release, AllMusic's Eduardo Rivadavia called Mob Rules "a magnificent
record".[78] The album was certified gold,[79] and reached the top 20 on the UK charts. The
album's title track "The Mob Rules", which was recorded at John Lennon's old house in
England,[76] also featured in the 1981 animated film Heavy Metal, although the film version is an
alternate take, and differs from the album version.[76]
Unhappy with the quality of 1980's Live at Last, the band recorded another live album—titled
Live Evil—during the Mob Rules world tour, across the United States in Dallas, San Antonio,
and Seattle, in 1982.[80] During the mixing process for the album, Iommi and Butler had a falling
out with Dio. Misinformed by their then-current mixing engineer, Iommi and Butler accused Dio
of sneaking into the studio at night to raise the volume of his vocals.[81] In addition, Dio was not
satisfied with the pictures of him in the artwork.[82] "Ronnie wanted more say in things," Iommi
said. "And Geezer would get upset with him and that is where the rot set in. Live Evil is when it
all fell apart. Ronnie wanted to do more of his own thing, and the engineer we were using at the
time in the studio didn't know what to do, because Ronnie was telling him one thing and we were
telling him another. At the end of the day, we just said, 'That's it, the band is over'".[83] "When it
comes time for the vocal, nobody tells me what to do. Nobody! Because they're not as good as
me, so I do what I want to do," Dio later said. "I refuse to listen to Live Evil, because there are
too many problems. If you look at the credits, the vocals and drums are listed off to the side.
Open up the album and see how many pictures there are of Tony, and how many there are of me
and Vinny".[84]
Ronnie James Dio left Black Sabbath in November 1982 to start his own band, and took
drummer Vinny Appice with him. Live Evil was released in January 1983, but was
overshadowed by Ozzy Osbourne's Speak of the Devil, a platinum selling[85] live album that
contained only Black Sabbath songs, released five months earlier.[25]
[edit] Born Again (1983–1984)
The two original members left, Tony Iommi and Geezer Butler, began auditioning new singers
for the band's next release. Whitesnake's David Coverdale was reportedly approached and
declined.[citation needed] Also considered were Samson's Nicky Moore, and Lone Star's John
Sloman. The band settled on former Deep Purple vocalist Ian Gillan to replace Ronnie James Dio
in December 1982.[28][86] While the project was not initially set to be called Black Sabbath,
pressures from the record label forced the group to retain the name.[86] The band entered The
Manor Studios in Shipton-on-Cherwell, Oxfordshire, in June 1983 with a returned and newly
sober Bill Ward on drums.[86] Born Again was panned upon release by critics. Despite the
negative reception of the album, it reached number four on the UK charts, and number 39 in the
US.[48] Even a decade after its release AllMusic's Eduardo Rivadavia called the album "dreadful",
noting that "Gillan's bluesy style and humorous lyrics were completely incompatible with the
lords of doom and gloom".[87]
Although he performed on the album, drummer Bill Ward was unable to tour because of the
pressures of the road, and quit the band after the commencement of the Born Again album. "I fell
apart with the idea of touring," Ward later said. "I got so much fear behind touring, I didn’t talk
about the fear, I drank behind the fear instead and that was a big mistake."[88] Ward was replaced
by former Electric Light Orchestra drummer Bev Bevan for the Born Again '83 -'84 world
tour,[86] (often unofficially referred to as the 'Feigh Death Sabbath '83 – '84' World Tour) which
began in Europe with Diamond Head, and later in the US with Quiet Riot and Night Ranger. The
band headlined the 1983 Reading Festival, adding the Deep Purple song "Smoke on the Water"
to their set list.
The tour in support of Born Again included a giant set of the Stonehenge monument. In a move
that would be later parodied in the mockumentary This Is Spinal Tap, the band made a mistake in
ordering the set piece. As Geezer Butler later explained:
We had Sharon Osbourne's dad, Don Arden, managing us. He came up with the idea of having
the stage set be Stonehenge. He wrote the dimensions down and gave it to our tour manager. He
wrote it down in meters but he meant to write it down in feet. The people who made it saw
fifteen meters instead of fifteen feet. It was 45 feet high and it wouldn't fit on any stage anywhere
so we just had to leave it in the storage area. It cost a fortune to make but there was not a
building on earth that you could fit it into.[89]
[edit] Hiatus and Seventh Star (1984–1986)
Following the completion of the Born Again tour in March 1984, vocalist Ian Gillan left Black
Sabbath to re-join Deep Purple, which was reforming after a long hiatus. Bevan left at the same
time, and Gillan remarked that he and Bevan were made to feel like "hired help" by Iommi. The
band then recruited an unknown Los Angeles vocalist named David Donato. The new line-up
wrote and rehearsed throughout 1984, and eventually recorded a demo with producer Bob Ezrin
in October. Unhappy with the results, the band parted ways with Donato shortly after.[28]
Disillusioned with the band's revolving line-up, bassist Geezer Butler quit Black Sabbath in
November 1984 to form a solo band. "When Ian Gillan took over that was the end of it for me",
Butler later said. "I thought it was just a joke and I just totally left. When we got together with
Gillan it was not supposed to be a Black Sabbath album. After we had done the album we gave it
to Warner Bros. and they said they were going to put it out as a Black Sabbath album and we
didn’t have a leg to stand on. I got really disillusioned with it and Gillan was really pissed off
about it. That lasted one album and one tour and then that was it."[89]
Following Butler's exit, sole remaining original member Tony Iommi put Black Sabbath on
hiatus, and began work on a solo album with long-time Sabbath keyboardist Geoff Nicholls.
While working on new material, the original Black Sabbath line-up were offered a spot at Bob
Geldof's Live Aid benefit concert; the band agreed, performing at the Philadelphia show, on 13
July 1985.[25][86] The event marked the first time the original line-up appeared on stage since
1978, and also featured reunions of The Who and Led Zeppelin.[90] Returning to his solo work,
Iommi enlisted bassist Dave Spitz and drummer Eric Singer, and initially intended to use
multiple singers, including Rob Halford of Judas Priest, ex-Deep Purple and Trapeze vocalist
Glenn Hughes, and ex-Black Sabbath vocalist Ronnie James Dio, but this plan didn't work as he
forcasted.[86] "We were going to use different vocalists on the album, guest vocalists, but it was
so difficult getting it together and getting releases from their record companies. Glenn Hughes
came along to sing on one track and we decided to use him on the whole album."[91]
The band spent the remainder of the year in the studio, recording what would become Seventh
Star. Warner Bros. refused to release the album as a Tony Iommi solo release, instead insisting
on using the name Black Sabbath.[92] Pressured by the band's manager, Don Arden, the two
compromised and released the album as "Black Sabbath featuring Tony Iommi" in January
1986.[93] "It opened up a whole can of worms really," Iommi explained, "because I think if we
could have done it as a solo album, it would have been accepted a lot more."[94] Seventh Star,
which sounded little like a Black Sabbath album, incorporated more hard rock elements
popularised by the 1980s Sunset Strip hard rock scene, and was panned by the critics of the era,
although later reviewers such as AllMusic gave the album favourable reviews, calling the album
"often misunderstood and underrated".[92]
The new line-up rehearsed for six weeks, preparing for a full world tour, although the band were
eventually forced to use the Black Sabbath name. "I was into the 'Tony Iommi project', but I
wasn't into the Black Sabbath moniker," Hughes said. "The idea of being in Black Sabbath didn't
appeal to me whatsoever. Glenn Hughes singing in Black Sabbath is like James Brown singing in
Metallica. It wasn't gonna work".[91][95] Just four days before the start of the tour, vocalist Glenn
Hughes got into a bar fight with the band's production manager John Downing which splintered
the singer's orbital bone. The injury interfered with Hughes' ability to sing, and the band brought
in vocalist Ray Gillen to continue the tour with W.A.S.P. and Anthrax, although nearly half of
the US dates would eventually be cancelled because of poor ticket sales.[96]
One vocalist whose status is disputed, both inside and outside Black Sabbath, is Christian
evangelist and former Joshua frontman, Jeff Fenholt. Fenholt has insisted that he was a singer in
Black Sabbath between January and May 1985.[25] Tony Iommi has never confirmed this, as he
was working on a solo release that was later named as a Sabbath album. Fenholt gives a detailed
account of his time with Iommi and Sabbath in Garry Sharpe-Young's book Sabbath Bloody
Sabbath: The Battle for Black Sabbath.[97]
[edit] The Eternal Idol, Headless Cross and TYR (1986–1990)
Black Sabbath began work on new material in October 1986 at Air Studios in Montserrat with
producer Jeff Glixman. The recording was fraught with problems from the beginning, as
Glixman left after the initial sessions, and was replaced by producer Vic Coppersmith-Heaven.
Bassist Dave Spitz quit over "personal issues", and ex-Rainbow bassist Bob Daisley was brought
in. Daisley re-recorded all of the bass tracks, and wrote the album's lyrics, but before the album
was complete, he left to join Gary Moore's backing band, taking drummer Eric Singer with
him.[28] After problems with second producer Coppersmith-Heaven, the band returned to Morgan
Studios in England in January 1987 to work with new producer Chris Tsangarides. While
working in the UK, new vocalist Ray Gillen abruptly left Black Sabbath to form Blue Murder
with John Sykes. The band enlisted ex-Alliance vocalist Tony Martin to re-record Gillen's tracks,
and former Electric Light Orchestra drummer Bev Bevan to complete a few percussion
overdubs.[25] Before the release of the new album, Black Sabbath accepted an offer to play six
shows at Sun City, South Africa during the apartheid era. The band drew criticism from activists
and artists involved with Artists United Against Apartheid, who had been boycotting South
Africa since 1985.[98] Drummer Bev Bevan refused to play the shows, and was replaced by Terry
Chimes, formerly of The Clash.[25]
After nearly a year in production, The Eternal Idol was released on 8 December 1987 and
ignored by contemporary reviewers. On-line internet era reviews were mixed. Allmusic said that
"Martin's powerful voice added new fire" to the band, and the album contained "some of Iommi's
heaviest riffs in years."[99] Blender gave the album two stars, claiming the album was "Black
Sabbath in name only".[100] The album would stall at No. 66 in the UK, while peaking at 168 in
the US.[48] The band toured in support of Eternal Idol in Germany, Italy and for the first time,
Greece. Unfortunately, in part because of a backlash from promoters over the South Africa
incident, other European shows were cancelled.[101] Bassist Dave Spitz left the band shortly
before the tour, and was replaced by Jo Burt, formerly of Virginia Wolf.
Following the poor commercial performance of The Eternal Idol, Black Sabbath were dropped
by Vertigo Records and Warner Bros. Records, and signed with I.R.S. Records.[25] The band took
time off in 1988, returning in August to begin work on their next album. As a result of the
recording troubles with Eternal Idol, Tony Iommi opted to produce the band's next album
himself. "It was a completely new start", Iommi said. "I had to rethink the whole thing, and
decided that we needed to build up some credibility again".[102] Iommi enlisted ex-Rainbow
drummer Cozy Powell, long-time keyboardist Nicholls and session bassist Laurence Cottle, and
rented a "very cheap studio in England".[102]
Black Sabbath released Headless Cross in April 1989, and again ignored by contemporary
reviewers. Eventually, Allmusic would give the album four stars, calling Headless Cross "the
finest non-Ozzy or Dio Black Sabbath album".[103] Anchored by the number 62 charting single
"Headless Cross", the album reached number 31 on the UK charts, and number 115 in the US.[48]
Queen guitarist Brian May, a good friend of Iommi's, played a guest solo on the song "When
Death Calls". Following the album's release, the band added touring bassist Neil Murray,
formerly of Whitesnake, Gary Moore's backing band, and Vow Wow.[28]
The ill-fated Headless Cross U.S. tour began in May 1989 with openers Kingdom Come and
Silent Rage, but because of poor ticket sales, the tour was cancelled after just eight shows.[25]
The European leg of the tour began in September, where the band were enjoying chart success.
After a string of Japanese shows, the band embarked on a 23 date Russian tour with Girlschool.
Black Sabbath was one of the first bands to tour Russia, after Mikhail Gorbachev opened the
country to western acts for the first time in 1989.[101]
The band returned to the studio in February 1990 to record TYR, the follow-up to Headless
Cross. While not technically a concept album, some of the album's lyrical themes are loosely
based on Norse mythology.[25] TYR was released on 6 August 1990, and reached number 24 on
the UK albums chart, but was the first Black Sabbath release not to break the Billboard 200 in
the US.[48] The album would receive mixed internet-era reviews, with Allmusic noting that the
band "mix myth with metal in a crushing display of musical synthesis",[104] while Blender gave
the album just one star, claiming that "Iommi continues to besmirch the Sabbath name with this
unremarkable collection".[105] The band toured in support of TYR with Circus of Power in
Europe, but the final seven UK dates were cancelled because of poor ticket sales.[106] For the first
time in their career, the band's touring cycle did not include US dates.[107]
[edit] Dehumanizer (1990–1992)
Following a performance in 1990, both Ronnie James Dio and Geezer Butler (pictured)
expressed interest in rejoining Black Sabbath
While on his own Lock Up The Wolves US tour in August 1990, former Black Sabbath vocalist
Ronnie James Dio was joined on stage at the Minneapolis Forum by former Black Sabbath
bassist Geezer Butler to perform "Neon Knights". Following the show, the two expressed interest
in rejoining Black Sabbath. Butler convinced Iommi, who in turn broke up the current line-up,
dismissing vocalist Tony Martin and bassist Neil Murray. "I do regret that in a lot of ways",
Iommi said. "We were at a good point then. We decided to [reunite with Dio] and I don't even
know why, really. There's the financial aspect, but that wasn't it. I seemed to think maybe we
could recapture something we had".[102]
Ronnie James Dio and Geezer Butler joined Tony Iommi and Cozy Powell in the fall of 1990 to
begin working on the next Black Sabbath release. While rehearsing in November, Powell
suffered a broken hip when his horse died, falling on the drummer's legs.[108] Unable to complete
work on the album, Powell was replaced by former drummer Vinny Appice, reuniting the Mob
Rules era line-up, and the band entered the studio with producer Reinhold Mack. The year-long
recording process was plagued with problems, primarily stemming from writing tension between
Iommi and Dio, and some songs were re-written multiple times.[109] "Dehumanizer took a long
time, it was just hard work", Iommi said. "We took too long on it, that album cost us a million
dollars, which is bloody ridiculous".[102] Dio later recalled the album as difficult, but worth the
effort. "It was something we had to really wring out of ourselves, but I think that's why it works",
he said. "Sometimes you need that kind of tension, or else you end up making the Christmas
album".[110]
The resulting album, Dehumanizer was released on 22 June 1992. In the US, the album was
released on 30 June 1992 by Reprise Records, as Ronnie James Dio and his namesake band were
still under contract with the label at the time. While the album received mixed reviews,[108][111] it
was the band's biggest commercial success in a decade.[28] Anchored by the top 40 rock radio
single "TV Crimes", the album peaked at number 44 on the Billboard 200.[28] The album also
featured the song "Time Machine", a version of which had been recorded for the 1992 film
Wayne's World. Additionally, the perception by many fans of a return of some semblance of the
"real" Black Sabbath provided the band with some much needed momentum.
Black Sabbath began touring in support of Dehumanizer in July 1992 with Testament, Danzig,
Prong, and Exodus. While on tour, former vocalist Ozzy Osbourne announced his first
retirement, and invited Black Sabbath to open for his solo band at the final two shows of his No
More Tours tour in Costa Mesa, California. The band agreed, aside from vocalist Ronnie James
Dio, who said:
I was told in the middle of the tour that we would be opening for Ozzy in Los Angeles. And I
said, "No. Sorry, I have more pride than that." A lot of bad things were being said from camp to
camp, and it created this horrible schism. So by [the band] agreeing to play the shows in L.A.
with Ozzy, that, to me, spelled out reunion. And that obviously meant the doom of that particular
project.[110]
Dio quit Black Sabbath following a show in Oakland, California on 13 November 1992, one
night before the band were set to appear at Osbourne's retirement show. Judas Priest vocalist Rob
Halford stepped in at the last minute, performing two nights with the band.[112] Iommi and Butler
also joined Osbourne and former drummer Bill Ward on stage for the first time since 1985's Live
Aid concert, performing a brief set of Black Sabbath songs.
[edit] Cross Purposes and Forbidden (1993–1996)
Drummer Vinny Appice left the band following the reunion show to join Ronnie James Dio's
solo band, later appearing on Dio's Strange Highways and Angry Machines. Iommi and Butler
enlisted former Rainbow drummer Bobby Rondinelli, and reinstated former vocalist Tony
Martin. The band returned to the studio to work on new material, although the project was not
originally intended to be released under the Black Sabbath name. As Geezer Butler explains:
It wasn't even supposed to be a Sabbath album; I wouldn't have even done it under the pretence
of Sabbath. That was the time when the original band were talking about getting back together
for a reunion tour. Tony and myself just went in with a couple of people, did an album just to
have, while the reunion tour was (supposedly) going on. It was like an Iommi/Butler project
album.[113]
According to information though within Garry Sharpe-Young's books Black Sabbath: Never Say
Die! 1979–1997 and Sabbath Bloody Sabbath: The Battle for Black Sabbath, singer Tony Martin
contradicts Butler's statements to this notion, claiming he even has Butler on audio and video
boldly stating how pleased he was with the album's outcome, and how much fun he had in the
studio creating a new Black Sabbath album.[citation needed] Furthermore in Young's books pertaining
to the Cross Purposes era, Bobby Rondinelli also is on record stating, "No fucking way! Tony
Iommi asked me to join BLACK SABBATH!"[citation needed]
Under pressure from their record label, the band released their seventeenth studio album, Cross
Purposes, on 8 February 1994, under the Black Sabbath name. The album ended up received
mixed reviews, with Blender giving the album two stars, calling Soundgarden's 1994 album
Superunknown "a far better Sabbath album than this by-the-numbers potboiler".[114] Allmusic's
Bradley Torreano called Cross Purposes "the first album since Born Again that actually sounds
like a real Sabbath record".[115] The album just missed the Top 40 in the UK reaching number 41,
and also reached 122 on the Billboard 200 in the US. Cross Purposes contained the song "Evil
Eye", which was co-written by Van Halen guitarist Eddie Van Halen, although uncredited
because of record label restrictions.[25] Touring in support of Cross Purposes began in February
with Morbid Angel and Motörhead in the US. The band filmed a live performance at the
Hammersmith Apollo on 13 April 1994, which was released on VHS accompanied by a CD,
entitled Cross Purposes Live. After the European tour with Cathedral and Godspeed in June
1994, drummer Bobby Rondinelli quit the band and was replaced by original Black Sabbath
drummer Bill Ward for five shows in South America.
Following the touring cycle for Cross Purposes, bassist Geezer Butler quit the band for the
second time. "I finally got totally disillusioned with the last Sabbath album, and I much preferred
the stuff I was writing to the stuff Sabbath were doing".[113] Butler formed a solo project called
GZR, and released Plastic Planet in 1995. The album contained the song "Giving Up the Ghost",
which was critical of Tony Iommi for carrying on with the Black Sabbath name, with the lyrics:
You plagiarised and parodied / the magic of our meaning / a legend in your own mind / left all
your friends behind / you can't admit that you're wrong / the spirit is dead and gone.[116]
Following Butler's departure, newly returned drummer Bill Ward once again left the band.
Iommi reinstated former members Neil Murray on bass, and Cozy Powell on drums, effectively
reuniting the Tyr line-up. The band enlisted Body Count guitarist Ernie C to produce the new
album, which was recorded in London in the fall of 1994. The album featured a guest vocal on
"Illusion of Power" by Body Count vocalist Ice-T.[117] The resulting Forbidden, was released on
8 June 1995, but failed to chart in the US or the UK.[118][119] The album was widely panned by
critics; Allmusic's Bradley Torreano said "with boring songs, awful production, and uninspired
performances, this is easily avoidable for all but the most enthusiastic fan";[120] while Blender
magazine called Forbidden "an embarrassment ... the band’s worst album".[121]
Black Sabbath embarked on a world tour in July 1995 with openers Motörhead and Tiamat, but
two months into the tour, drummer Cozy Powell left the band, citing health issues, and was
replaced by former drummer Bobby Rondinelli. After completing Asian dates in December
1995, Tony Iommi put the band on hiatus, and began work on a solo album with former Black
Sabbath vocalist Glenn Hughes, and former Judas Priest drummer Dave Holland. The album was
not officially released following its completion, although a widely traded bootleg called Eighth
Star surfaced soon after. The album was officially released in 2004 as The 1996 DEP Sessions,
with Holland's drums re-recorded by session drummer Jimmy Copley.[122]
In 1997, Tony Iommi disbanded the current line-up to officially reunite with Ozzy Osbourne and
the original Black Sabbath line-up. Vocalist Tony Martin claimed that an original line-up reunion
had been in the works since the band's brief reunion at Ozzy Osbourne's 1992 Costa Mesa show,
and that the band released subsequent albums to fulfill their record contract with I.R.S. records.
Martin later recalled Forbidden as a "filler album that got the band out of the label deal, rid of
the singer, and into the reunion. However I wasn’t privy to that information at the time".[123]
I.R.S. Records released a compilation album in 1996 to fulfill the band's contract, entitled The
Sabbath Stones, which featured songs from Born Again to Forbidden.
[edit] Osbourne Reunion (1997–2006)
Ozzy Osbourne in 2007.
In the summer of 1997, Tony Iommi, Geezer Butler, and Ozzy Osbourne officially reunited to
co-headline the Ozzfest festival tour along side Osbourne's solo band. The line-up featured
Osbourne's drummer Mike Bordin filling in for Bill Ward, who was unable to participate because
of previous commitments with his solo project, The Bill Ward Band.[28] In December 1997, the
group was joined by Ward, marking the first reunion of the original four members since
Osbourne's 1992 "retirement show". The original line-up recorded two shows at the Birmingham
NEC, which were released as the double live album Reunion on 20 October 1998. Reunion
reached number eleven on the Billboard 200,[48] and went platinum in the US.[28][124] The album
spawned the single "Iron Man", which won Black Sabbath its first and only Grammy award in
2000 for Best Metal Performance, 30 years after the song was originally released. Reunion also
featured two new studio tracks, "Psycho Man" and "Selling My Soul", both of which cracked the
top 20 on the Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks chart.[48]
Shortly before the band embarked on a European tour in the summer of 1998, drummer Bill
Ward suffered a heart attack and was temporarily replaced by former drummer Vinny
Appice.[125] Ward returned in time for the US tour with openers Pantera, which began in January
1999 and continued through the summer, headlining the annual Ozzfest tour.[28] Following the
Ozzfest appearances, the band was put on hiatus while members worked on solo material. Tony
Iommi released his first official solo album, Iommi, in 2000, while Osbourne continued work on
his next solo release, Down to Earth.
Black Sabbath returned to the studio to work on new material with all four original members and
producer Rick Rubin in the spring of 2001,[28] but the sessions were halted when Osbourne was
called away to finish tracks for his solo album in the summer of 2001.[126] "It just came to an
end", Iommi said. "We didn't go any further, and it's a shame because [the songs] were really
good".[127] Iommi commented on the difficulty getting all of the band members together to work
on material:
It's quite different recording now. We've all done so much in between. In [the early] days there
was no mobile phone ringing every five seconds. When we first started, we had nothing. We all
worked for the same thing. Now everybody has done so many other things. It's great fun and we
all have a good chat, but it's just different, trying to put an album together.[127]
In March 2002, Ozzy Osbourne's Emmy winning reality TV show The Osbournes debuted on
MTV, and quickly became a worldwide hit.[28] The show introduced Osbourne to a broader
audience and to capitalise, the band's back catalogue label, Sanctuary Records released a double
live album Past Lives, which featured concert material recorded in the '70s, including the
previously unofficial Live at Last album. The band remained on hiatus until the summer of 2004
when they returned to headline Ozzfest 2004 and 2005. In November 2005, Black Sabbath were
inducted into the UK Music Hall of Fame, and in March 2006, after eleven years of eligibility,
the band were inducted into the US Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.[128] At the awards ceremony
Metallica played two Black Sabbath songs, "Hole in the Sky" and "Iron Man" in tribute to the
band.[129]
[edit] The Dio Years and Heaven & Hell (2006–2010)
For more details on this topic, see Heaven & Hell (band).
Vinny Appice performing a drum solo with Heaven & Hell at Spodek in Katowice on 20 June
2007
While Ozzy Osbourne was working on new solo album material in 2006, Rhino Records released
Black Sabbath: The Dio Years, a compilation of songs culled from the four Black Sabbath
releases featuring Ronnie James Dio. For the release, Iommi, Butler, Dio and Appice reunited to
write and record three new songs as Black Sabbath. The Dio Years was released on 3 April 2007,
reaching number 54 on the Billboard 200, while the single "The Devil Cried" reached number 37
on the Mainstream Rock Tracks chart.[48] Pleased with the results, Iommi and Dio decided to
reunite the Heaven and Hell era line-up for a world tour. While the line-up of Osbourne, Butler,
Iommi and Ward were still officially called Black Sabbath, the new line-up opted to call
themselves Heaven & Hell, after the album of the same name, to avoid confusion. Drummer Bill
Ward was initially set to participate, but dropped out before the tour began due to musical
differences with "a couple of the band members".[130] He was replaced by former drummer Vinny
Appice, effectively reuniting the line-up that had featured on the Mob Rules and Dehumanizer
albums.
Heaven & Hell toured the US with openers Megadeth and Machine Head, and recorded a live
album and DVD in New York on 30 March 2007, entitled Live from Radio City Music Hall. In
November 2007, Dio confirmed that the band had plans to record a new studio album,[131] which
was recorded in the following year. In April 2008 the band announced the upcoming release of a
new box set and their participation in The Metal Masters Tour, alongside Judas Priest,
Motörhead and Testament.[132] The box set, The Rules of Hell, featuring remastered versions of
all the Dio fronted Black Sabbath albums, was supported by the Metal Masters Tour. In 2009,
the band announced the name of their debut studio album, The Devil You Know, released on 28
April.[133]
In March 2010, Black Sabbath announced that along with Metallica they would be releasing a
limited edition single together to celebrate Record Store Day. It was released on 17 April
2010.[134]
On 26 May 2009 Osbourne filed suit in a federal court in New York against Iommi alleging that
he illegally claimed the band name. Iommi noted that he has been the only band member for the
full forty one years of the band, and that his bandmates relinquished their rights to the name in
the 1980s, therefore claiming more rights to the name of the band. Although, in the suit,
Osbourne is seeking 50% ownership of the trademark, he has said that he hopes the proceedings
will lead to equal ownership among the four original members.[135]
On 16 May 2010, Ronnie James Dio passed away after a battle against stomach cancer.[136] In
June 2010, the legal battle between Ozzy Osbourne and Tony Iommi over the trademarking of
the Black Sabbath name ended, but the terms of the settlement have not been disclosed.[137]
[edit] Talks of original line-up reunion (2010 – present)
In a January 2010 interview while promoting his biography I Am Ozzy, Osbourne stated that
although he is not ruling out a reunion, he is doubtful there will be a reunion with all original
members. Osbourne states "I'm not gonna say I've written [a reunion] out forever, but right now I
don't think there is any chance. But who knows what the future holds for me? If it's my destiny,
fine." Osbourne compares it to going back to an ex-girlfriend, stating: "I had girlfriends when I
was younger and I would go, 'Oh, I would really like to go back with Shirley', and then you do
and you go to yourself, 'What the fuck was I thinking?'"[138]
According to Geezer Butler, there will be no Black Sabbath reunion with Osbourne in 2011, as
Osbourne will be touring with his solo band.[139]
On 17 August it was stated by Tony Iommi on his official website that the Birmingham journalist
who he had spoken with about the possible reunion exaggerated the truth. Iommi was merely
speculating and no actual plans of a reunion were made.[140]
[edit] Musical style
Although Black Sabbath have gone through many line-ups and stylistic changes, their original
sound focused on ominous lyrics and doomy music,[23] often making use of the musical tritone,
also called the "devil's interval".[22] Standing in stark contrast to popular music of the early
1970s, Black Sabbath's dark sound was dismissed by rock critics of the era.[28] Much like many
of their early heavy metal contemporaries, the band received virtually no airplay on rock
radio.[141]
As the band's primary songwriter, Tony Iommi wrote the majority of Black Sabbath's music,
while Osbourne would write vocal melodies, and bassist Geezer Butler would write lyrics. The
process was sometimes frustrating for Iommi, who often felt pressured to come up with new
material. "If I didn't come up with anything, nobody would do anything."[49] On Iommi's
influence, Osbourne later said:
Black Sabbath never used to write a structured song. There'd be a long intro that would go into a
jazz piece, then go all folky... and it worked. Tony Iommi—and I have said this a zillion times—
should be up there with the greats. He can pick up a guitar, play a riff, and you say, 'He's gotta be
out now, he can't top that.' Then you come back, and I bet you a billion dollars, he'd come up
with a riff that'd knock your fucking socks off.[142]
Early Black Sabbath albums feature tuned-down guitars, which contributed to the dark feel of the
music.[28] In 1966, before forming Black Sabbath, guitarist Tony Iommi suffered an accident
while working in a sheet metal factory, losing the tips of two fingers on his right hand. Iommi
almost gave up music, but was urged by the factory manager to listen to Django Reinhardt, a jazz
guitarist who lost the use of two fingers.[143] Inspired by Reinhardt, Iommi created two thimbles
made of plastic and leather to cap off his missing fingers. The guitarist began using lighter
strings, and detuning his guitar, to better grip the strings with his prosthesis, a move which
inadvertently gave the music a darker feel.[143] Early in the band's history Iommi experimented
with different dropped tunings, including C♯ tuning, or 3 semitones down, before settling on
E♭/D♯ tuning, or a half-step down from standard tuning.[144]
[edit] Legacy
Black Sabbath are inarguably one of the most influential heavy metal bands of all time. The band
helped to create the genre with ground breaking releases such as Paranoid, an album that Rolling
Stone magazine said "changed music forever",[145] and called the band "The Beatles of heavy
metal".[146] Time Magazine called Paranoid "the birthplace of heavy metal", placing it in their
Top 100 Albums of All Time.[147] MTV placed Black Sabbath at number one on their Top Ten
Heavy Metal Bands[148] and VH1 placed them at number two on their list of the 100 Greatest
Artists of Hard Rock.[149] VH1 ranked Black Sabbath's "Iron Man" the number one song on their
40 Greatest Metal Songs countdown.[150] Allmusic's William Ruhlmann said:
Black Sabbath has been so influential in the development of heavy metal rock music as to be a
defining force in the style. The group took the blues-rock sound of late '60s acts like Cream, Blue
Cheer, and Vanilla Fudge to its logical conclusion, slowing the tempo, accentuating the bass, and
emphasising screaming guitar solos and howled vocals full of lyrics expressing mental anguish
and macabre fantasies. If their predecessors clearly came out of an electrified blues tradition,
Black Sabbath took that tradition in a new direction, and in so doing helped give birth to a
musical style that continued to attract millions of fans decades later.[28]
[edit] Influence and innovation
Metallica's Lars Ulrich, who, along with bandmate James Hetfield inducted Black Sabbath into
the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2006, said "Black Sabbath is and always will be synonymous
with heavy metal",[151] while Hetfield said "Sabbath got me started on all that evil-sounding shit,
and it's stuck with me. Tony Iommi is the king of the heavy riff."[152] Ex-Guns N' Roses guitarist
Slash said of the Paranoid album: "There's just something about that whole record that, when
you're a kid and you're turned onto it, it's like a whole different world. It just opens up your mind
to another dimension...Paranoid is the whole Sabbath experience; very indicative of what
Sabbath meant at the time. Tony's playing style — doesn’t matter whether it's off 'Paranoid' or if
it's off 'Heaven and Hell' — it's very distinctive."[152] Anthrax guitarist Scott Ian said "I always
get the question in every interview I do, 'What are your top five metal albums?' I make it easy for
myself and always say the first five Sabbath albums."[152] Lamb of God's Chris Adler said: "If
anybody who plays heavy metal says that they weren't influenced by Black Sabbath's music, then
I think that they're lying to you. I think all heavy metal music was, in some way, influenced by
what Black Sabbath did."[153]
In addition to being pioneers of heavy metal, they also have been credited for laying the
foundations for heavy metal subgenres stoner rock,[154] sludge metal,[155][156] black metal, and
doom metal. Sabbath were also one of the earliest to turn gothic music into a genre.[157]
Culturally, Black Sabbath have exerted a huge influence in both television and literature and
have in many cases become synonymous with heavy metal. In the film Almost Famous, Lester
Bangs gives the protagonist an assignment to cover the band (plot point one) with the immortal
line: 'Give me 500 words on Black Sabbath'. Contemporary music and arts publication Trebuchet
Magazine has put this to practice by asking all new writers to write a short piece (500 words) on
Black Sabbath as a means of proving their creativity and voice on a well documented subject.[158]
[edit] Members
Main article: List of Black Sabbath band members
Original line-up
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Tony Iommi – lead guitar, keyboards, flute (1969–2006)
Ozzy Osbourne – lead vocals, harmonica (1969–1977, 1978–1979, 1997–2006)
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Geezer Butler – bass guitar, synthesisers (1969–1985, 1990–1994, 1997–2006)
Bill Ward – drums, percussion, vocals (1969–1980, 1983, 1985, 1994, 1997–2006)
[edit] Discography
For a more comprehensive list, see Black Sabbath discography.
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Black Sabbath (1970)
Paranoid (1970)
Master of Reality (1971)
Black Sabbath Vol. 4 (1972)
Sabbath Bloody Sabbath (1973)
Sabotage (1975)
Technical Ecstasy (1976)
Never Say Die! (1978)
Heaven and Hell (1980)
Mob Rules (1981)
Born Again (1983)
Seventh Star (1986)
The Eternal Idol (1987)
Headless Cross (1989)
TYR (1990)
Dehumanizer (1992)
Cross Purposes (1994)
Forbidden (1995)
[edit] External links
[hide]v · d · eBlack Sabbath
Tony Iommi • Ozzy Osbourne • Geezer Butler • Bill Ward
Ronnie James Dio • Vinny Appice • Geoff Nicholls • Tony Martin • Ian Gillan • Glenn Hughes •
Ray Gillen • Cozy Powell • Neil Murray • Bev Bevan • Jo Burt • Terry Chimes • Bob Daisley •
Bobby Rondinelli • Eric Singer • Dave Spitz • Dave Walker
Black Sabbath • Paranoid • Master of Reality • Black Sabbath Vol. 4 • Sabbath
Bloody Sabbath • Sabotage • Technical Ecstasy • Never Say Die! • Heaven and
Studio albums
Hell • Mob Rules • Born Again • Seventh Star • The Eternal Idol • Headless
Cross • TYR • Dehumanizer • Cross Purposes • Forbidden
Live albums
Live Evil • Cross Purposes Live • Reunion • Past Lives • Live at Hammersmith
Odeon
We Sold Our Soul for Rock 'n' Roll • The Collection • The Sabbath Stones •
Symptom of the Universe: The Original Black Sabbath 1970–1978 • Black Box:
Compilations
The Complete Original Black Sabbath (1970–1978) • Greatest Hits 1970–1978 •
The Dio Years • The Rules of Hell
Unofficial
albums
Live at Last • The Sabbath Collection • The Ozzy Osbourne Years • Under Wheels
of Confusion • The Best of Black Sabbath • Club Sonderauflage
Singles
and other
songs
"Evil Woman" • "N.I.B." • "The Wizard" • "Paranoid" • "Iron Man" • "War
Pigs" • "Fairies Wear Boots" • "Sweet Leaf" • "Children of the Grave" • "Into the
Void " • "Changes" • "Sabbath Bloody Sabbath" • "Symptom of the Universe" •
"Rock 'n' Roll Doctor" • "Dirty Women" • "Never Say Die!" • "Neon Knights" •
"Heaven and Hell" • "Die Young" • "The Mob Rules" • "Turn Up the Night" •
"Trashed" • "Zero the Hero" • No Stranger to Love" • "TV Crimes" • "Psycho
Man" • "The Devil Cried"
Book:Black Sabbath ·
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Category:Black Sabbath ·
Portal:Heavy metal
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