Night Ranger is an American hard rock band from San Francisco, California. Formed in 1979 under the name "Stereo", the group was originally a trio composed of former Rubicon members Jack Blades (bass, lead vocals), Kelly Keagy (drums, lead vocals) and Brad Gillis (guitar, backing vocals).[1] In 1980, the group expanded to a five-piece with the addition of keyboardist Alan Fitzgerald and second guitarist Jeff Watson, as well as changing its name to "Ranger" and later Night Ranger.[2] After four commercially successful albums, the band experienced its first lineup change in early 1988 when Fitzgerald left prior to the recording of Man in Motion.[3] Jesse Bradman, one of the substitute performers on the album, subsequently joined the group full-time.[1] After Blades announced his departure, Night Ranger officially broke up in April 1989.[4]
Two years after disbanding, Night Ranger was reformed by Keagy and Gillis, who recruited Gary Moon as the replacement for Blades.[5] In 1993, David Zajicek joined the band as touring guitarist and keyboardist.[6] Following the release and touring of Feeding off the Mojo, Blades, Watson and Fitzgerald all returned to mark a reunion of the original five-piece lineup of Night Ranger, after being invited to tour Japan.[7] Two more studio albums followed, before Fitzgerald was replaced in 2003 by Michael Lardie of Great White.[8] Watson also left in April 2007, with Whitesnake's Reb Beach taking his place for subsequent tour dates.[9] Following a Japanese tour shortly after Beach's arrival, Lardie was replaced by Christian Matthew Cullen.[10] In January 2008, Joel Hoekstra joined the band full-time, as Beach returned to Whitesnake.[11][12]
Following the addition of Hoekstra, the Night Ranger lineup remained stable for three years, until Eric Levy replaced Cullen on keyboards in March 2011.[13] Hoekstra remained for two studio albums and one live release, before it was announced in August 2014 that he was leaving to join Beach in Whitesnake.[14] He was soon replaced by Keri Kelli, who had previously substituted for Hoekstra during shows in 2012 and 2013.[15][16]
Members
editCurrent
edit| Image | Name | Years active | Instruments | Release contributions |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kelly Keagy |
|
|
all Night Ranger releases | |
| Brad Gillis |
| |||
| Jack Blades |
|
|
all Night Ranger releases, except Feeding off the Mojo (1995) | |
| Eric Levy | 2011–present |
|
all Night Ranger releases from Somewhere in California (2011) onwards | |
| Keri Kelli | 2014–present (plus select shows in 2012 and 2013) |
|
|
Former
edit| Image | Name | Years active | Instruments | Release contributions |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jeff Watson |
|
|
all releases from Dawn Patrol (1982) to Live in Japan (1990), and from Neverland (1997) to Hole in the Sun (2007) | |
| Alan Fitzgerald |
|
|
all releases from Dawn Patrol (1982) to Big Life (1987), and from Neverland (1997) to Seven (1998) | |
| Jesse Bradman | 1988–1989 |
| ||
| Gary Moon | 1991–1996 |
|
Feeding off the Mojo (1995) | |
| Michael Lardie | 2003–2007 |
|
| |
| Christian Matthew Cullen | 2007–2011 | none | ||
| Joel Hoekstra | 2008–2014 |
|
|
Touring
edit| Image | Name | Years active | Instruments | Details |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| David Zajicek | 1993–1996 (died 2016) |
|
Zajicek joined Night Ranger's touring lineup in 1993, as well as contributing guitar to Feeding off the Mojo.[1][6] | |
| Reb Beach | 2007–2008 |
|
After Watson was fired, Beach replaced him in the band for 2007 dates, appearing on Rockin' Shibuya 2007.[9] | |
| Deen Castronovo |
|
|
Castronovo substituted for Keagy in 2011, and again during 2017 after the drummer had a heart operation.[17] | |
| Brandon Ethridge | 2012 |
|
Ethridge substituted for Levy for one show on September 1, 2012, as his wife was giving birth.[citation needed] | |
| Fred Coury | 2017 | drums | Coury substituted for Keagy alongside Castronovo, while the regular drummer was recovering from surgery.[17] |
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Timeline
edit
Lineups
edit| Period | Members | Releases |
|---|---|---|
| 1979–1980 |
|
none – live performances only |
| 1980 |
| |
| 1980 – early 1988 |
|
|
| Early – mid-1988 |
|
|
| Late 1988 – April 1989 |
|
|
| Band inactive April 1989 – mid-1991 | ||
| Mid-1991 – mid-1996 |
|
|
| June 1996 – early 2003 |
|
|
| Early 2003 – April 2007 |
|
|
| April – June 2007 |
|
|
| June 2007 – January 2008 |
|
none – live performances only |
| January 2008 – March 2011 |
| |
| March 2011 – August 2014 |
|
|
| September 2014 – present |
|
|
References
edit- ^ a b c "Night Ranger: Biography & History". AllMusic. Retrieved May 9, 2019.
- ^ Russell, Xavier (June 2018). "Boogie Night!" (PDF). Rock Candy. No. 8. p. 39. Retrieved May 9, 2019.
- ^ Giles, Jeff (March 1, 2017). "30 Years Ago: Night Ranger Struggle To Maintain Momentum With 'Big Life'". Ultimate Classic Rock. Retrieved May 9, 2019.
- ^ Rene, Sheila (April 14, 1989). "Here and There" (PDF). The Gavin Report. No. 1752. p. 21. Retrieved May 9, 2019.
- ^ Henriques, Christina (January 6, 1993). "Picking Up Where He Left Off". Miami New Times. Retrieved May 9, 2019.
- ^ a b McNeice, Andrew J. "Interviews: Night Ranger - Kelly Keagy". MelodicRock.com. Retrieved May 9, 2019.
- ^ Burgess, Mick (June 8, 2017). "Jack Blades (Night Ranger) Interview". Metal Express Radio. Retrieved May 9, 2019.
- ^ Devenish, Colin (July 2, 2003). "Great White Downsize Tour". Rolling Stone. Retrieved May 9, 2019.
- ^ a b "Night Ranger - Reb Beach To Replace Departed Jeff Watson On Upcoming Tour". Brave Words & Bloody Knuckles. April 10, 2007. Retrieved May 9, 2019.
- ^ Cavacini, Michael (July 20, 2018). "Christian Matthew Cullen Discusses Night Ranger". Michael Cavacini. Retrieved May 9, 2019.
- ^ Derrough, Leslie Michele (November 14, 2011). "Joel Hoekstra". Glide Magazine. Retrieved May 9, 2019.
- ^ Cavacini, Michael (June 8, 2018). "A Conversation With Joel Hoekstra". Michael Cavacini. Retrieved May 9, 2019.
- ^ "Please Make Welcome Eric Levy". Night Ranger. March 8, 2011. Archived from the original on July 14, 2011. Retrieved May 9, 2019.
- ^ DeRiso, Nick (August 21, 2014). "Guitarist Joel Hoekstra Leaves Night Ranger For Whitesnake". Ultimate Classic Rock. Retrieved May 9, 2019.
- ^ Munro, Scott (September 1, 2014). "Night Ranger name guitarist". Classic Rock. Retrieved May 9, 2019.
- ^ Mosqueda, Ruben (March 28, 2019). "Interview with A New Revenge and Night Ranger guitarist Keri Kelli". Sleaze Roxx. Retrieved May 9, 2019.
- ^ a b "Night Ranger's Kelly Keagy Takes Leave Of Absence Following Successful Heart Procedure". Blabbermouth.net. April 14, 2017. Retrieved May 9, 2019.