Night Ranger Biography
Featuring ex-Ozzy Osbourne guitarist Brad Gillis and former Montrose keyboardist Alan Fitzgerald, Night Ranger was one of the most popular mainstream hard rock bands of the mid-'80s. The group formed in the early '80s in San Francisco; in addition to Gillis and Fitzgerald, the members included Jack Blades (vocals, bass), Jeff Watson (guitar), and Kelly Keagy (drums). After a few local gigs, promoter Bill Graham managed to get them supporting slots on Judas Priest, Santana, and Doobie Brothers concerts. Night Ranger's first album, Dawn Patrol (1982), reached number 38 on the U.S. charts, yet it was 1983's Midnight Madness that established the band as a commercial force. Featuring the AOR hit "(You Can Still) Rock in America" and the number five single "Sister Christian," the record peaked at number 15 and sold over a million copies. 1985's 7 Wishes was just as successful, reaching number ten on the charts. Night Ranger's audience began to diminish after 1987's Big Life. Fitzgerald left the following year and the band released their last album, Man in Motion, which failed to go gold or spawn any Top 40 singles. Night Ranger broke up the next year. Jack Blades joined the supergroup Damn Yankees, which also featured Ted Nugent and Tommy Shaw. A reunited Night Ranger returned in 1998 with Seven. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide
Popular Biographies:
Abba Biography: The most commercially successful pop group of the 1970s, the origins of the Swedish superstars ABBA dated back to 1966, when keyboardist and vocalist Benny Andersson, a onetime member of the popular...
Insyderz Biography: In 1995, (the Insyderz) were formed in Detroit, Michigan after (Joe Yerke) and friend (Nate Sjogren) saw a void in the Christian ska scene. They approached this venture with one mission: to dispense...
Sofa surfers Biography: The trip-hop act Sofa Surfers was founded by a quartet of sound-obsessed Viennese instrumentalists: Wolfgang Schlögl, Markus Kienzl, Wolfgang Frisch, and Michael Holzgruber. The...
Two Biography: The group Two are in fact just two people (vocalist Rob Halford and guitarist John Lowery). Halford, of course, was the lead singer of Judas Priest for nearly 20 years. After leaving the band in 1991...
Garou Biography: French pop singer Garou vaulted to fame as Quasimodo in the 1998 stage musical Notre-Dame de Paris. Born Pierre Garand in Sherbrooke, Quebec, on June 26, 1972, he was a child prodigy who mastered...
Peawees Biography: The Peawees came screaming out of La Spezia, Italy, in 1995 with a punk-pop assault that recalled the Ramones. With a lineup consisting of guitarist/vocalist Hervé Peroncini (ex-the Manges),...
My bloody valentine Biography: Like the Velvet Underground, Sonic Youth, and the Jesus & Mary Chain before them, My Bloody Valentine redefined what noise meant within the context of pop songwriting. Led by guitarist Kevin Shields,...
After crying Biography: Hungarian progressive rock band After Crying was formed in 1986 by a classically-trained trio who performed improvisational chamber music. Csaba Vedres (piano), Péter Pejtsik (cello), and...