Montrose

Montrose was an American hard rock band formed in 1973, named after guitarist and founder Ronnie Montrose. The original line-up consisted of lead vocalist Sammy Hagar, bassist Bill Church, and drummer Denny Carmassi. The band achieved moderate commercial success before disbanding in early 1977. Their debut album, "Montrose" (1973), produced by Ted Templeman, became a sleeper hit over time, eventually selling over one million copies and attaining platinum status in 1986. Read more on Last.fm …read full bio

Montrose was an American hard rock band formed in 1973, named after guitarist and founder Ronnie Montrose. The original line-up consisted of lead vocalist Sammy Hagar, bassist Bill Church, and drummer Denny Carmassi. The band achieved moderate commercial success before disbanding in early 1977. Their debut album, "Montrose" (1973), produced by Ted Templeman, became a sleeper hit over time, eventually selling over one million copies and attaining platinum status in 1986. Before forming Montrose, Ronnie Montrose had worked as a session musician, contributing to Van Morrison's "Tupelo Honey" album and other projects, and was a member of the Edgar Winter Group, performing on the hit single "Frankenstein" from "They Only Come Out at Night" (1972). The original Montrose line-up was formed after Montrose left the Edgar Winter Group, with Hagar and Carmassi recruited from local San Francisco cover bands and Church joining through prior session work connections. The band made its public debut on April 21, 1973, in a live broadcast on KSAN FM featuring songs from their forthcoming album and unreleased tracks. The debut album "Montrose" peaked at number 133 on the U.S. Billboard chart and was later recognized as influential in hard rock and heavy metal, including on bands such as Iron Maiden. Bassist Bill Church was replaced by Alan Fitzgerald for the second album, "Paper Money" (1974), which reached number 65 on the Billboard 200. During this period, creative differences arose, and Hagar left the band in February 1975, replaced by vocalist Bob James. Keyboardist Jim Alcivar also joined, and the band released "Warner Brothers Presents... Montrose!" (1975) and "Jump On It" (1976), with Randy Jo Hobbs replacing Fitzgerald on bass for the latter album’s recording and tour. Montrose’s commercial peak occurred between 1975 and 1977 under the management of Bill Graham, with "Warner Bros Presents... Montrose!" reaching number 79 on the Billboard 200. Ronnie Montrose enforced a drug- and alcohol-free policy for performances following his prior experience with substance abuse in the Edgar Winter Group. After Bob James departed in December 1976, the band dissolved. Ronnie Montrose released the solo instrumental album "Open Fire" (1978) and later formed Gamma with Jim Alcivar, Alan Fitzgerald, Skip Gillette, and vocalist Davey Pattison. Sammy Hagar went on to a successful solo career, releasing albums with hit singles including "Your Love Is Driving Me Crazy", "I Can't Drive 55", and "Heavy Metal", and joined Van Halen in 1985. Ronnie Montrose reformed Montrose in 1987 with singer Johnny Edwards, drummer James Kottak, and bassist Glenn Letsch, releasing the album "Mean" (1987). The original Montrose line-up reunited for recordings on Hagar’s "Marching to Mars" (1997) and performed together on stage at various concerts in the 2000s. From 2001 until his death, Ronnie Montrose performed with a rotating line-up including Keith St John on vocals, and various bassists and drummers. He overcame prostate cancer between 2007 and 2009 and remained active in live performances. A reunion of the original line-up was planned for 2012, but Ronnie Montrose died by suicide on March 3, 2012. An all-star tribute concert was held on April 27, 2012, featuring Sammy Hagar, Denny Carmassi, Bill Church, and Joe Satriani on lead guitar. Studio albums Montrose (1973) Paper Money (1974) Warner Bros. Presents Montrose! (1975) Jump on It (1976) Mean (1987) Read more on Last.fm. User-contributed text is available under the Creative Commons By-SA License; additional terms may apply.

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…shrink me down again