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Lemmy Kilmister
A FullInBloom Tribute
Songwriter, Guitarist, Visionary and Metal Pioneer
Motörhead, Hawkwind

Motörhead Discögraphy                

The world of heavy metal lost a true icon this week, as Motörhead frontman Ian "Lemmy" Kilmister succumbed to a brutally aggressive form of cancer. Metal stalwarts and pioneers expressed their sorrow on social media, as well as fans and icons from other forms of media, as well. Check out the hash tag #RIPLemmy to read some of the thousands of remembrances from across the entertainment spectrum. Kilmister's impact on rock, and heavy metal in particular, is without doubt, as he is cited as a major influence by nearly every musician that's ever donned ripped jeans and a guitar. Early Motörhead is considered by many as the foundation for thrash, and their frontman is considered one of the biggest and most original rock stars ever to command a stage. Behind his leadership, Motörhead released 22 full lengths, four EPs, nine live albums and 12 official compilations. The records Overkill, Ace of Spades and Iron Fist are considered metal classics, and all three are often included on list of the Top 50 or 100 metal albums ever.


Lemmy began his musical journey began at the age of fifteen, while in attending school in Wales. It was there that he picked up the nickname Lemmy, though he's always claimed he can't remember why. Rummors have substantiated that it came of his habit of borrowing money all the time, as in: "lemmy a quid 'til payday." When Lemmy was sixteen, he saw The Beatles perform at The Cavern Club, and was so inspired he learned to play their entire Please Please Me record on guitar. The aspiring musician moved to Stockport, England in the early sixties, joining the bands The Rainmakers and The Mowtown Sect, neither achieving any success. Lemmy then joined The Rockin' Vickers, who got a deal with CBS and moved to Manchester. The band released three singles and launched a brief European trek, but failed to catch on and Lemmy decided to leave. The relentless musician decided to relocate to London, and wound up sharing a flat with Jimi Hendrix Experience bassist Noel Redding and their manager, Neville Chesters. This led to Kilmister joining the band on tour as a roadie, after which he joined a psychedelic rock band called Sam Gopal, then Opal Butterfly. Neither band took off, though the former did cut a record and release a single with Lemmy.






Promo video for Hawkwind's "Silver Machine", featuring Lemmy

               


Broke but not beaten, Lemmy joined Hawkwind in 1971, switching from rhythm to bass guitar for the first time and handling vocals. The band performed a show at London's Roundhouse venue in February 1972, recording the set for the Greasy Truckers Party live album. The band released a single to promote the live set, landing their highest charting single ever with "Silver Machine". The frontman's weakness for drugs reared itself even in those days. In fact, he was urged to join the band by Hawkwind bassist Dik Mik, who wanted to have another fan of amphetamines in the band. After a couple of albums, while on tour in North America, Kilmister was arrested at the US-Canadian border, spending five days in jail for drug possession. Charges were dropped over a technicality, but the band fired him, anyway. The final song Kilmister wrote for Hawkwind was "Motörhead" (insert foreshadowing music here), which only appeared as a B-side and Bonus Track. The title comes from an American slang term for speed addict, and was written in the middle of the night at the West Hollywood Hyatt.


With Lemmy's time in Hawkwind at an end, he formed a new band with guitarist Larry Wallis (Pink Fairies, UFO) and drummer Lucas Fox. They dubbed the new trio Bastard, but were warned that a band with that moniker would never make it ti the BBC's "Top of the Pops" program, so the name was changed to Motörhead, used as the title of the final track Kilmister wrote for Hawkwind. The band signed a deal with United Artists and recorded an album, but the label was dissatisfied and refused to release it, though they did release the material as On Parole several years later. During the recording sessions, Fox repeatedly missed sessions and was replaced by Phil "Philthy Animal" Taylor. Taylor introduced Lemmy to guitarist "Fast" Eddie Clarke, who was invited to join the band as a second guitarist. Still a touring member of the Pink Fairies, Wallis quit, leaving Motörhead's classic lineup in place. The trio recorded a single for Stiff Records, but United Artists prevented its release because the band was still under contract.



Motörhead, circa 1976


Overkill hit stores in March, 1979, and the underground music scene took notice. The album spent several weeks on the UK charts, peaking at No. 24. With classics like the title track and "No Class", the album is cited as an important step in the evolution of metal. The British metal magazine Kerrang!, in fact, recognizes Overkill as the #46 set on its "100 Greatest Heavy Metal Albums of All Time" list. Overkill is often considered the first song ever to feature the double-bass drum technique that would become a staple of thrash and other fast-tempo forms of extreme metal. As a result, "Philthy Animal" is remembered as fondly by many drummers as Lemmy is by songwriters. The band toured through the spring then hit the studio to try and capitalize on their surging momentum. Recorded in July and August, 1979, Bomber dropped in October of that year, quickly ascending to No. 12 on the UK Albums chart. The title track was released as a single and reached No. 34 on the UK Singles chart. The band launched a successful tour with support from Saxon. With the band's popularity on the rise, United Artists tried to capitalize by releasing their unreleased recordings as the album On Parole.


In May, 1980, Motörhead dropped their first live album, The Golden Years. The record quickly became the band's biggest success yet, rising to No. 8 on the UK album chart. The band got another boost later that summer when they appeared on the television show Rockstage with Girlschool. The performance would air the following summer, exposing both bands to a broader audience. In August and September, 1980, Lemmy and crew were laying down tracks for their next effort with producer Vic Maile. Titled Ace of Spades, the album dropped in early November, 1980, and would prove to be Motörhead's first release to go gold. The effort peaked at No. 4 on the UK charts, and was the first Motörhead record to chart outside the UK, reaching No. 37 on the Norwegian chart. The band recruited Girlschool for a support tour, then hit the studio with the band to record the EP, St. Valentines Massacre. Released in February, 1980, the effort rose to No. 5 on the UK charts.



Motörhead and Girlschool



Next came the release of the band's second live album, No Sleep 'Til Hammersmith, scoring their first No. 1 record in the process. Released in June, 1981, the live set not only reached the pinnacle on the UK chart, it also charted in Germany, Norway, New Zealand and Sweden. The early 1980s would prove to be an important stretch for Motörhead, as many die-hard fans consider Ace of Spades and No Sleep 'til Hammersmith their definitive LP and live albums, respectively. Both sets are often included among the Top 50 of lists of the greatest metal albums of all time. In April 1981, Motörhead set its sights on American metal fans, launching its first US tour. A European tour would follow, as well as television appearances on Top of the Pops and the David Jensen Show. In late January, 1982, Lemmy and company hit the studio again to lay down album number five. The band would spend all of February recording the effort, releasing the self-produced record on April 17th, 1982. Titled Iron Fist, the effort reached No. 6 in the UK and No. 4 in Norway. The effort also became the band's first to chart in the US, while also reaching the top 30 in the Netherlands, Germany and Sweden.


In mid-March, 1982, Lemmy, "Philthy Animal" Taylor and "Fast" Eddie Clarke hit the road for the "Iron Fist UK" tour, followed by the band's first North American headlining tour. Iron Fist would prove to be the final album and tour to feature Motörhead's classic lineup, as "Fast" Eddie would resign shortly after the tour. Lemmy had partnered with Wendy O. Williams and the Plasmatics on a cover of the Tammy Wynette song, Stand By Your Man. Convinced that the song compromised the band's principles, Clarke refused to participate and resigned. He would make guest appearances on future Motörhead albums and tours, but would never be an official member again. The shredder did go on to form the band Fastway, with UFO bassist Pete Way, enjoying only moderate success. Lemmy and Taylor would continue on, recruiting former Thin Lizzy guitarist Brian Robertson, who agreed to help finish up the tour and stayed on for the next album. With Robertson in the fold, the band hit the studio in February 1983 to begin work on Motörhead's sixth full length.



Motörhead's Classic Lineup, circa 1982



Next came the release of the band's second live album, No Sleep 'Til Hammersmith, scoring their first No. 1 record in the process. Released in June, 1981, the live set not only reached the pinnacle on the UK chart, it also charted in Germany, Norway, New Zealand and Sweden. The early 1980s would prove to be an important stretch for Motörhead, as many die-hard fans consider Ace of Spades and No Sleep 'til Hammersmith their definitive LP and live albums, respectively. Both sets are often included among the Top 50 of lists of the greatest metal albums of all time. In April 1981, Motörhead set its sights on American metal fans, launching its first US tour. A European tour would follow, as well as television appearances on Top of the Pops and the David Jensen Show. In late January, 1982, Lemmy and company hit the studio again to lay down album number five. The band would spend all of February recording the effort, releasing the self-produced record on April 17th, 1982. Titled Iron Fist, the effort reached No. 6 in the UK and No. 4 in Norway. The effort also became the band's first to chart in the US, while also reaching the top 30 in the Netherlands, Germany and Sweden.


In mid-March, 1982, Lemmy, "Philthy Animal" Taylor and "Fast" Eddie Clarke hit the road for the "Iron Fist UK" tour, followed by the band's first North American headlining tour. Iron Fist would prove to be the final album and tour to feature Motörhead's classic lineup, as "Fast" Eddie would resign shortly after the tour. Lemmy had partnered with Wendy O. Williams and the Plasmatics on a cover of the Tammy Wynette song, "Stand By Your Man". Convinced that the song compromised the band's principles, Clarke refused to participate and resigned. He would make guest appearances on future Motörhead albums and tours, but would never be an official member again. The shredder did go on to form the band Fastway, with UFO bassist Pete Way, enjoying only moderate success. Lemmy and Taylor would continue on, recruiting former Thin Lizzy guitarist Brian Robertson, who agreed to help finish up the tour and stayed on for the next album. With Robertson in the fold, the band hit the studio in February 1983 to begin work on Motörhead's sixth full length.


Titled Another Perfect Day, the first Motörhead album without Clarke on guitar reached No. 20 on the UK charts after its June 4th release. The album also charted in the US, Germany, Sweden and the Netherlands. The album spawned two charting singles in "I Got Mine" and "Shine," with videos released for both. The band would spend the rest of '83 on the road, launching their first Japanese tour dates and their longest US trek yet. On mid-November, 1983, Robertson left the band. Lemmy decided to modify the lineup to a 2-guitar look, recruiting relative unknowns Wurzel and Phil Campbell to take Clarke's spot. With the new lineup complete, the band re-recorded "Ace of Spades" for an episode of the British television series The Young Ones. The project angered Taylor, who quit after the recording. Intent to press on, Lemmy held an audition for former Saxon drummer Pete Gill, who was hired to replace the band's original drummer. Unimpressed with the band's new lineup, Bronze Records decided to put together a compilation before the band's following dropped off. Lemmy heard about the project and insisted they be allowed to record new tracks for the release. The band would record a total of six new tracks, and the double album No Remorse was released on September 15, 1984.



Video for Motörhead's "I Got Mine"



No Remorse achieved moderate success, but wold prove to be Motörhead's last release on Bronze Records. The album reached No. 14 on the UK chart, and the lead single, "Killed By Death" reached No. 51 on the UK Singles chart. The next two years were marked by legal battles between the band and Bronze, who they accused of improperly promoting their music. In an attempt to keep solvent while the Bronze dispute played out in court, the band stayed on the road, touring with Exciter, Mercyful Fate and others. Once the Bronze matter was decided, in their favor, Motörhead's management formed their own label called GWR, for Great Western Road. Titled Orgasmatron, the band's seventh album was recorded in just eleven days, and was released on August 9, 1986. The set reached No. 21 in the UK, and a single entitled "Deaf Forever" charted, as well. An extensive tour was launched, including a headlining slot at the Monsters of Rock festival.


In 1987, Lemmy was hired to star in the comedy film, Eat the Rich. Motörhead was tapped for the soundtrack, which included a new track written and named for the film. The song would also be included on Motörhead's next album, Rock n' Roll, released September 5, 1987. Around the same time, the "Philty Animal" made his return to Motörhead, replacing the outgoing Pete Gill. The band's eighth album reached No. 34 on the UK chart, while also charting in the US, Germany, Sweden and the Netherlands. The band spent the rest of the '80s on the road as the band again launched a suit against their label. The case was resolved in the summer of 1990, and the band signed a deal with Epic Records, spending most of the rest of the year on its ninth album. Titled 1916, the set was released on January 21, 1991, reaching No. 24 on the UK chart. The effort also charted in the US, Germany, Sweden and Switzerland.


Lemmy would continue to be active in film and television, appearing in the 1990 sci-fi film Hardware and the 1994 comedy Airheads. The Motörhead frontman appeared in several films from Troma Entertainment, including playing the US President in Return to Nuke 'Em High. Kilmister appeared in a 1992 video game, named after the band, and as an unlockable character in the 2009 game, Guitar Hero: Metallica. The legendary performer also appeared in a documentary film about his life. Titled Lemmy, the film includes scores of interviews with rock and metal luminaries including Metallica, Ozzy Osbourne and members of Megadeth and Anthrax. The biopic also includes candid footage of the metal legend hanging out in the studio and in bars with friends like Dave Grohl and actor Billy Bob Thornton. The film also illustrates how Lemmy lived a large part of his life, either on tour or hanging out at the Rainbow Bar and Grill in Hollywood. Many notable metal musicians have joked that they bump into Lemmy every time they stop in at the Rainbow Grill, including Motley Crue's Nikki Sixx. The rockumentary shows where Lemmy still lived when he died, in a small rent-controlled apartment in Hollywood, which he refused to give up because of its proximity to the Rainbow. Lemmy never married, and was very close to his son, Paul, who occasionally joined his father onstage. Check out Lemmy to learn more about this metal legend, and always keep playing the Motörhead classics, loud!!