Great White

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For other uses, see Great White (disambiguation).

<tr><th>Origin</th><td>Los Angeles, California</td></tr><tr><th>Country</th><td>United States</td></tr><tr><th>Years active</th><td>1981 - Present</td></tr><tr><th>Genres</th><td>Hard Rock, Glam Metal, Blues Rock</td></tr><tr><th>Labels</th><td>A&R(1999)</td></tr><tr><th>Members</th><td> Jack Russell
Mark Kendall
Tyler Nelson
Derrick Pontier
Scott Pounds</td></tr><tr><th>Website(s)</th><td>www.mistabone.com</td></tr>

Great White

Great White is an American blues-based Rock and Glam Metal band. Great White formed in 1981 in Los Angeles, California under the name Dante Fox. Their sound is notable for its similarities to Led Zeppelin: Great White singer Jack Russell's vocals are often also very similar to Robert Plant's distinctive wail. Great White were managed for a significant amount of time by Alan Niven (he also co-wrote with them), who also notably went on to manage Guns 'n Roses. Great White are still creatively active, and still tour. Recently, Great White has received attention due to their involvement in the The Station nightclub fire, which led to the deaths of 100 people in Rhode Island in 2003. Musically, they are known primarily for their hit "Once Bitten, Twice Shy", a cover version of a song written by Mott the Hoople's Ian Hunter.

Audio samples:

"Once Bitten, Twice Shy" (1989) (file info) — play in browser (beta)

A song from ...Twice Shy, Great White's second multiplatinum selling album.

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1 The 1980s
2 The 1990s
3 The 2000s
4 Discography
- 4.1 Albums
5 Reference

[edit] The 1980s

Great White started life as Dante Fox, playing their first gig in 1981 at The Troubadour in Hollywood.

After recording several demos, they took on Alan Niven as manager, Niven having worked for independent distributor Greenworld in Torrance, California. Greenworld released Great White's eponymous debut in 1984. Shot in the Dark, their follow-up independent release, marked the arrival of drummer Audie Desbrow who replaced original drummer Gary Holland. By the time Capitol Records signed the band and reissued Shot in the Dark, keyboardist-guitarist Michael Lardie had come aboard. After the release of Shot in the Dark, Great White hit the road with Dokken and was on the verge of even bigger success.

The band hit the mainstream in 1987 when they released Once Bitten.... "Once Bitten..." was certified platinum in April 1988. The album featured some relatively successful hit songs - "Rock Me", "Lady Red Light", and "Save Your Love".

Audio samples:

"Save All Your Love" (1987) (file info) — play in browser (beta)

A song from Once Bitten... Great White's first platinum selling album.

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Problems playing the files? See media help. </li> </ul> </div> </div> The band followed up with ...Twice Shy in (1989; see 1989 in music). The album included their biggest hit, Once Bitten, Twice Shy for which they received a Grammy Award nomination for Best Hard Rock Performance. The album was certified platinum in July 1989 and then double platinum in September of that same year. The model Bobbie Brown (also known for being in Warrant's "Cherry Pie" video) appeared in the video for "Once Bitten, Twice Shy". They finished off the 80s touring in support of "...Twice Shy" and with some larger bands, such as Bon Jovi. In 1990 a heavy metal video called "HARD N HEAVY" containing music, concert footage and interviews was released. The video included Slash and Duff from GNR appearing with the band at a "Children Of the Night" Benefit concert in LA for abused homeless children, the performance helped raise money for housing[1][2]. Both bands shared the same manager.

[edit] The 1990s

The band continued into the next decade performing "House of Broken Love" on the American Music Awards in January 1990. That spring, Great White embarked on their first tour of Japan. They soon returned stateside for the Memorial Day weekend festival, dubbed The World Series of Rock, which featured Whitesnake, Skid Row, Bad English, and Hericane Alice. Great White recorded two more albums for Capitol — Hooked, which was certified gold, and Psycho City, which is to this day considered by many to be their most underrated effort. In support of Hooked, Great White toured, completing a headline tour, a guest slot with the Scorpions, and trips to Europe and Japan. Psycho City was followed by a U.S. tour with KISS.

Although Capitol issued a "Best Of" compilation in 1993, Great White had already departed the label to begin work on their next studio release, Sail Away. Great White spent a grueling seven straight months on the road headlining clubs. According to Lardie, it was "the longest stint we ever did without a break." Great White kept up the pace once Sail Away was released on Zoo Records in 1994, touring the country several times over the following year and a half. Their next release, Let It Rock, was released through yet another label, Imago, in 1996.

In 1999 the band released Can't Get There From Here and embarked on a successful tour with Ratt, Poison, and LA Guns. The Album featured the single Rollin' Stoned, which managed to chart on the adult rock charts.

[edit] The 2000s

It was a disaster that brought Great White into the limelight again. Pyrotechnics used by the band's crew sparked a fire in a Rhode Island nightclub (see The Station nightclub fire) on February 20, 2003, killing 100 people including the band's guitarist, Ty Longley. A spray of sparks produced by a set of devices called gerbs, designed to ignite a controlled display of sparks, ignited the foam soundproofing material behind the stage. The band was playing the song "Desert Moon" when the fire erupted [3]. The band toured in support of the victims and families of The Station tragedy.

Great White continues to tour and are currently working on another album. Guitarist Mark Kendall said the Southern California group has re-formed with its original members. Kendall and Russell have written 15 new songs for an as-yet untitled album to be recorded in Los Angeles and Salt Lake City by year's end. [4]