Lita Ford
(born September 19, 1958) is a British-born, American rock musician and singer who was the lead guitarist for The Runaways and achieved popularity for her solo career during the 1980s.
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Biography
Early life
Ford was born Carmelita Rossanna Ford to a British father and an Italian mother in
London, England. She moved with her family to the
United States at age 4. She began playing the guitar at age 11. Her vocal range is
mezzo-soprano.
[1]
In 1975 at the age of 17 she joined the all-female
rock band
The Runaways, for whom she played
lead guitar.
Solo career
After the group split in 1979, she began a solo career. Her first album,
Out for Blood
including the title single was released in 1983 and hadn't a luck to charts. The next effort,
Dancin' on the Edge
of 1984 got a moderate success. It included the single "Fire In My Heart" which reached the Top 10 in several countries. The next single "Gotta Let Go" was one of Ford's biggest hits. It reached Number One on the
Mainstream Rock
charts.
Ford toured extensively and made several guest appearances on TV shows for the next four years, but had no releases; a follow-up to
Dancin' On The Edge
, titled
The Bride Wore Black
, was abandoned and never released due to the fact Ford did not like the production of the album and this upset the head of her record label causing Ford to switch from
Mercury Records to
RCA Records. By the time Ford returned again, the lighter pop-metal she had long favored had broken through to mainstream audiences, which set the stage for her most commercially successful album, 1988's
Lita
. With
Sharon Osbourne as her manager, and again produced by herself, the album featured four commercial hits, including the #1 "Kiss Me Deadly", #9 "Back To The Cave", #2 "Close My Eyes Forever", and #3 "Falling In And Out Of Love" (co-written with
Nikki Sixx of
Mötley Crüe). The ballad "Close My Eyes Forever," was a duet with
Ozzy Osbourne. It was also her only Top 10
Billboard Hot 100 hit, reaching #8.
Her next release was called
Stiletto. It featured the singles "Hungry" and "Lisa" (the second was dedicated to her mother). However this album was not as successful as
Dancin' On The Edge
and
Lita.
Ford's next release was
Dangerous Curves.
Ford's last release would be with
ZYX Records and would be titled
Black
. It failed to repeat the success of 1991's
Dangerous Curves
.
Ford was asked by
VH-1 to be in the cast of "
The Surreal Life" for its 7th season, in 2007. She declined.
Ford appears in the 1992 film
Highway to Hell as 'The Hitchhiker'.
During her solo years, she was an endorsee of
B.C. Rich guitars and used Warlock, Eagle, Mockingbird and Bich single and double-neck models.
In mid June 2008, Ford and her new solo band played several warm up gigs prior to
Rocklahoma under the name
Kiss Me Deadly
in the New York City area.
[2]
Return to stage 2008, new album and tour 2009
For the first time in 15 years, Lita Ford took the stage in her only North American appearance at Rocklahoma, in Pryor, Oklahoma, July 12. Her new band was drummer
Stet Howland (
W.A.S.P.), Teddy Cook (
Dio),
Michael Cavanagh (
Bent Pussycat/
The Backseat Devils and
Michael T. Ross (
Angel/
XYZ).
[3] In June 2009, Lita began touring the US and Europe, with a new line-up consisting of
Ron 'Bumblefoot' Thal (
Guns N' Roses guitarist, 2006 - present) on guitar,
Dennis Leeflang (Bumblefoot drummer) and PJ Farley on bass (
Trixter, Ra) and
Michael T. Ross (
Angel/
XYZ).
Ford will release her new album
Wicked Wonderland
on October 6, 2009 and will be playing a 75 date tour.
[4]
Personal life
Lita Ford is married to
Jim Gillette, of the band
Nitro. With him she has two sons, with their first son having been born on Jim and Lita's third wedding anniversary. She was previously married to
W.A.S.P. guitarist
Chris Holmes, and was engaged to
Black Sabbath leader/guitarist
Tony Iommi in the mid-1980s.
In 2010, Ford will be portrayed by actress
Scout Taylor-Compton in the movie
The Runaways.
Tributes
An
achievement in the
Xbox 360 version of the
video game Guitar Hero II
, is titled the "Joan & Lita Award" in tribute to Lita and
Joan Jett. It is awarded to two players who can get a 100 note streak in cooperative mode.
Ford will also appear in a support role in the
Xbox 360 and
Playstation 3 videogame
Brutal Legend to be released in October 2009.
[5]
Her song,
Close My Eyes Forever
, was included in Karaoke Revolution: American Idol Encore.
The song "Kiss Me Deadly" was covered in a compilation album called
Viva La Internet/Blank CD
by
Reel Big Fish.
Discography
The Runaways Studio albums
| Year
| Album
| Peak chart positions
| Certifications
|
| UK
| US
| SWE
| SWI
| US
| CAN
|
| 1976
| The Runaways
| —
|
| —
| —
| —
| —
|
| 1977
| Queens of Noise
| —
| —
| —
| —
| —
|
| Waitin' for the Night
| —
| —
| —
| —
| —
| —
|
| And Now... The Runaways
| —
| —
| —
| —
| —
| —
|
| 1980
| Flaming Schoolgirls
| —
| —
| —
| —
| —
| —
|
Solo studio albums
| Year
| Album
| Peak chart positions [6]
| Certifications [7]
|
| UK
| US
| SWE
| SWI
| US
| CAN
|
| 1983
| Out for Blood
| —
| —
| —
| —
| —
| —
|
| 1984
| Dancin' on the Edge
| 119
| 65
| —
| —
| —
| —
|
| 1988
| Lita
| 58
| 29
| —
| —
| Platinum
| Gold
|
| 1990
| Stiletto
| 75
| 52
| 36
| 26
| —
| —
|
| 1991
| Dangerous Curves
| 123
| 139
| —
| —
| —
| —
|
| 1995
| Black
| —
| —
| —
| —
| —
| —
|
| 2009
| Wicked Wonderland
| —
| —
| —
| —
| —
| —
|
Compilation albums
- The Best of Lita Ford
(1992)
- Greatest Hits
(1999)
- Greatest Hits Live
(2000)
- Platinum and Gold Collection - The Best of Lita Ford
(2004)
Other appearances
- "I Want to Be Loved" with LOU on The Other Side
(2005)
- "I'll Be Home for Christmas" with Twisted Sister on A Twisted Christmas
(2006)
- "Brütal Legend" Video Game (2009)
Singles
| Year
| Single
| Peak chart positions
| Album
|
| US Hot 100
| US Main Rock
| UK
|
| 1983
| "Out for Blood"
| —
| —
| —
| Out for Blood
|
| "Dressed to Kill"
| —
| —
| —
| Dancin' on the Edge
|
| 1984
| "Fire In My Heart"
| —
| —
| —
|
| "Gotta Let Go"
| —
| —
| 94
|
| 1988
| "Kiss Me Deadly"
| 12
| 40
| 75
| Lita
|
| "Back to the Cave"
| —
| 22
| —
|
| 1989
| "Close My Eyes Forever" (ft. Ozzy Osbourne)
| 8
| 25
| 47
|
| "Falling In and Out of Love"
| —
| 37
| —
|
| 1990
| "Hungry"
| 98
| 14
| 76
| Stilleto
|
| "Lisa"
| —
| —
| —
|
| 1991
| "Shot of Poison"
| 45
| 21
| 63
| Dangerous Curves
|
| 1992
| "Playing with Fire"
| —
| —
| —
|
| "Larger Than Life"
| —
| —
| —
|
| 1995
| "Killin' Kind"
| —
| —
| —
| Black
|
Tours
- 1981 - Queens of Rock Tour
with Joan Jett and Sandy West
- 1982 - Rulers of Metal Tour
with Black Sabbath
- 1983 - Out For Blood Tour
with Scandal, Wes Luthor, and Tony Schladora
- 1984 - Dressed To Kill Tour
with Anthrax, The Johnson Brothers Band, Skillet, Metal Mania
- 1985 - South and Central America Tour
with Soundgarden
- 1986 - Wild Tour
with several local bands opening at different venues
- 1986 - Metal Rulz Tour
with Poison, Mötley Crüe, Judas Priest, Iron Maiden, Ozzy Osbourne.
References
- Pro Secrets Of Heavy Rock Singing
- Eddie Trunk
- Pryor Daily Times - Lita Ford to play Rocklahoma
- [1]
- http://www.gametrailers.com/video/e3-09-brutal-legend/50432
- Allmusic
- RIAA Search Results